


Military Intelligence

by britishatheart



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Case Fic, Gen, Pairings to be added, Siblings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-06-06
Updated: 2012-08-02
Packaged: 2017-11-07 02:11:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 25,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/425751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/britishatheart/pseuds/britishatheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The death of a former Royal Marine in Oahu leads Five-0 to what could have been their very first unsolved case, but it doesn't happen; help comes from the most unexpected source when Kono's sister -- who they had never heard of -- says she might know someone who can help them. But, when things go south, they'll learn that there's more to Casey than they thought they knew...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue and Chapter One: Homeward Bound

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: Hawaii Five-0 and all recognizable characters belong to CBS. I only own the plot/story line and all the OCs you most definitely will find here. All rights are reserved and respected to their original copyright owners. No copyright infringement of any kind is intended.  
> Very special thank you to my lovely Beta, Jane!  
> I'm not sure if this should or should not be considered AU but, since I started writing this around the beginning of the year, I just thought I'd let you know right now that I won't be following the show's events... at least not for now, I suppose.

_**Prologue** _

**April, 2003**

_"Are you sure about that, honey?" asked a very concerned older woman. "I can go with you if you want to..."_

_"Don't worry, mom," replied the teenager with a forced smile._

_There was nothing cheerful about that moment. Her child was about to board on an airplane that would take her far away, to the Old Continent._

_"I need to do this," she continued as they waited for her flight to be called._

_The older woman tried to push back a tear but she didn't succeeded and it fell down her cheek, leaving a glowing path where it passed._

_"It's gonna be okay, mom," she tried to reassure her mother but she knew that was something quite impossible. It was hard to see someone you care about going away. Even if it's what they have to do. "I'm gonna be okay..."_

_The sixteen year old girl felt her mother's arms closing around her and the two women gave in to the sadness of the moment. The imminent separation was hurting them both, so much more than they could bear. So they just held onto each other while they could... Until a loud voice hit their ears, making them pull apart._

_"HEY! CASEY! WAIT UP!"_

_The young brunette looked at the woman who had just called out her name. A smile played on her lips one more time; even though it was still sad._

_"Hi there, sis... Training for a marathon or something?"_

_The young woman slowed down until she reached her sister. Her breathing pattern was slightly disturbed but not too much; she was quite an athlete._

_"Yeah," she said, waving her head to the sides softly. "Something... Were you trying to run away without saying goodbye?"_

_"I didn't want to bother you..."_

_"Oh, shut up!" she replied annoyed, but with a gentle and playful tone. "I'd be bothered if you just left without telling me anything. Actually, I'd be pretty damn mad."_

_Casey smiled weakly; she knew she wasn't joking. "I'm sorry. I know have an important day tomorrow and I didn't..." She let go of her carry-on bag and took one step closer to her older sister. "I'm really glad you're here."_

_The two young women hugged each other but only for a very brief moment; Casey's flight was soon announced and she needed to board._

_"Take care, will ya?" said the older sibling as she placed a kiss on the teen's head. "And don't forget to call."_

_"I won't," she promised. "Give everyone a kiss for me. Tell them I'm sorry I had to leave in such a rush... And tell dad I love him."_

_Just like her mother, a tear fell from the older sister's eyes. Casey was only sixteen and, my God, she was strong... Not all sixteen year old girls could handle hearing about their parent's death and cope so well with it. Sure she hadn't lived with her biological father since she was three, but they had talked every once in a while..._

_"I will," promised the older girl when her little sister brushed the tear away. "And come back soon. I'll miss you."_

_"I'll miss you too," she replied and then she turned to her mother. "Mom..."_

_"I know, honey." The woman's arms soon closed around her daughter again. Even though they didn't share the same blood, there was nothing in the world that would say they weren't family. "You need to go there, I know. It's just..."_

_"I know." Casey pulled a few inches away and saw dark eyes that were very familiar to her; they were red and watery. "I love you too, mom."_

_They called Casey's flight once again and she had to put up one hell of a fight to let go of her sister and her mother._

_"Don't miss me too much," Casey said as she grabbed the handle of her carry-on bag and headed to her boarding gate. "See you guys soon."_

_The three women waved at each other one last time._

_Despite the promises of seeing each other again, such a reencounter didn't happen. Casey boarded a plane that took her to London..._

_Days turned into weeks that turned into months. Years passed, and Casey didn't return._

* * *

**Chapter One.** _Homeward Bound  
_

**April, 2012**

Once again, she was on an airplane, going from one country to another. Casey had lost count of how many times she'd found herself doing that exact same thing; she was almost willing to bet she'd have more flight hours than a decent experienced pilot. She was so used to it that when the flight attendant started the instructions for the landing procedure, she didn't even waste energy paying attention to it — she knew it by heart.

Fasten seatbelt: checked.

Tray table and seat back into their full upright position: checked.

Remain calm: not checked.

For the first time that Casey could remember, she felt nervous. So nervous than when the plane started loosing attitude, she felt like she could be sick. She wasn't —  _Thank Heavens! That would be embarrassing..._  — but she came very close to throwing up.

About fifteen minutes later, Casey was walking through the doors of the Honolulu International Airport.

She was quite a contrast to everyone that was leaving the airport. Some were hugging their families, some were with their families and she guessed they were tourists, some (and those were very few) seemed to be people that were there for some professional reason — business men and women. And then there was her.

She felt completely out of place there. Even though she had come to Hawaii willingly, she was now starting to regret that decision, or at least second guess her idea that had sounded a lot better when she was in London.

Casey had come to Hawaii because that's where she knew her sister was living. Sure she missed her older sibling dearly, but, right now, she couldn't deny the simple and irrevocable fact that it's been almost ten years since they last saw each other. And if that wasn't bad enough, Casey promised she would return soon. And she didn't.

There was one thing that Casey was sure about: this visit could go wrong in so many ways. But she also knew that there was a possibility, as slim as it was, that they could work it out. And she was stubborn enough to not leave without trying.

Since she was here already then, what the hell, might as well just go for it. Casey wasn't a coward. So she hailed a cab, gave the driver an address and was now doing something that she long ago learned to not be reliable:  _hope for the best._

**—H50—**

"Alright," Danny said to the group that was gathered around the smart table. "Kono, go talk to the victim's sister. See if you can find anything about him. If he had any enemies, anyone that would want to harm him, if he was involved with something illegal. Anything. Chin, check with HPD if they had any luck with that deposit. I'll call Steve and tell him to head to Pearl. See if anyone can help with anything."

They all nodded and muttered a unison "got it" as they headed to do what Danny had delegated, as Steve had been subpoenaed to give his testimony on a case that they were involved in.

Their new case involved the Navy — a Lieutenant that was currently on Reserve was murdered — so it was only wise that Steve was the one to try any communication with the Naval Base. Normally that would be NCIS's jurisdiction, but since the victim in case was a friend of Steve's, he and his team were allowed in.

Danny had just ended the phone call, telling Steve to visit his former work place when he noticed someone had just entered the HQ. He walked out of his office to meet the young woman in the middle of the war room.

"Excuse me, miss." Danny said, trying to attract the woman's attention. She stopped looking around and her green eyes met his blue ones. "Can I help you?"

She hesitated for a while when he asked her that question but she was able to work on that fairly quickly — not without scolding herself mentally for still being nervous.

"Hi. I sure hope so," she said after a brief moment. "Uh- My name is Casey and I am looking for my sister... I was told she works here..."

Danny didn't respond immediately. He didn't exactly mean to study the woman in front of him — Casey — but that's exactly what he did. She seemed to be in her early twenties, had this curly long blonde hair, green eyes and very fair skin. He also couldn't miss the British accent; it wasn't anything heavy like Rachel's but it was most definitely there.

At first, when she said she was looking for her sister, Danny thought that she was looking for a missing person, but when she said that the sister she was looking for worked there, he felt a bit bad for the girl. Especially because shestill had her luggage with her, clearly showing she did not live there.

"Uh— It's Casey, right?" She nodded. "Look... I'm very sorry you had to come here," he said sincerely. "But your sister doesn't work with us anymore."

"Oh..."

"Yeah. I'm really sorry," Danny said softly, gesturing with his hands just a little. "But Agent Weston went back to the mainland a couple of months ago... She was—"

Casey shook her head a couple of times before interrupting Danny. "I'm sorry, who?"

"Lori Weston."

"And... Who's Lori Weston?" asked the young woman curiously.

"Isn't she..."

"My sister?" Casey furrowed her eyebrows, but then she smiled. "No. Actually, I have never heard of any Lori Weston. Ever."

Danny frowned lightly. He had assumed Casey was Lori's sister since they were, not exactly alike, but that seemed to be more likely. Then he remembered Jenna Kaye. "Then who...?"

Danny was about to ask who was Casey's sister when the doors opened.

"Hey, Danny, we ha—"

Kono was walking towards the blonde detective but she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the woman that was talking to him. Her voice also disappeared into thin air, leaving her speechless.

Chin was coming right behind his cousin and he was also pretty shocked when he saw the young woman. Not as much as Kono though. In a couple of seconds, he had recovered his ability to speak and walk.

"Well, hello there, stranger," he said, half amused, half serious, when he approached Danny and Casey.

"Hi, Chin," she muttered an answer and smiled slightly as they hugged.

"It's been a long time, honey girl," he said when they pulled apart. "You look great!"

"Thanks," she replied shyly. "You do too."

Chin smiled at her once more and took a step forward, almost like he was gonna talk to Danny, but he wasn't really. He stood there, watching as Casey's eyes found Kono's.

Danny heard that odd conversation. He looked from Casey to Chin then to Kono. Was that... No. Was it?

"How do you know her?" Danny asked Chin quietly, but he didn't need to wait for him to answer.

Casey took a couple of steps towards Kono, but she stopped before invading the Asian's personal space.

"Casey..." Kono's voice was just a whisper, and it showed how surprised she still was.

"Aloha, sis."


	2. Shifting sands

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads up, this chapter isn't really about the case and everything... That won't happen until Chapter 6 or perhaps 7... something like that; I don't really remember right now. But here's an update and I hope you enjoy. Oh, and comments are greatly appreciated.

_Shifting Sands_

 

"What are you doing here?" Kono asked once she had shut her office door. Not that it would make much difference, but it still gave her the sense of privacy she needed.

Casey swallowed hard when the iciness of Kono's words hit her. She was expecting that already... but she still wasn't prepared to face it. Or how to deal with it better.

"I came back," she said, trying her best not to fidget. "And I thought I should stop by and... say hi." She stuttered. Casey shut her eyes closed and cursed herself mentally. If she were working, that would be unacceptable.

"Really? That's the best you can do?" Kono stood still and her tone was pretty damn calm, but Casey knew better than to believe she was calm... They were sisters, and they used to be best friends... At least until Casey screwed everything up pretty badly and didn't keep her promise.

"Look, Kono, you have every right to be angry at me—"

"You're damn right I have!"

"But," Casey continued after taking a deep breath and trying to ignore Kono's mini outburst. "If you let me explain..."

"There's nothing to explain, Casey... You made things pretty clear nine freaking years ago!"

Kono was quite mad and that was evident for everyone to see. Everyone, including Chin and Danny, who were working on the information the two cousins had gotten.

When the Asian woman raised her voice inside her office, Danny and Chin couldn't help but look away from the table and have a peek at what was going on.

"Kono seems to be pretty angry," Danny sort of whispered at Chin. He had seen her mad a few times, but this was something new...

"Yeah, she is," Chin agreed, keeping his voice low as well. "She and Casey were pretty close when they were teenagers..."

"So, how come I never heard Kono talking about her— sister before?" Danny hesitated a bit on the sister. He was really curious about the long lost Kalakaua.

"Long story short, Casey went to London, England, nine years ago... and she didn't return. Kono didn't take that well and didn't get over it as you can see. Like I said, they were very close."

Danny shifted his eyes back to the two women that were now having a silent yet huge battle inside the tiny little office. The tension was so strong and so thick that just by looking at them Danny felt embraced by it; for some reason, it reminded him more than just a little bit of his brother... It's been quite a long while since they last spoke — nothing like nine years, but still.

He was just thinking about that when the door of Kono's office opened and the two women left. Chin and Danny hurried to try to look busy.

"So... See you later?" Casey asked Kono very carefully when they walked past them, towards the main doors.

"I don't know... I—I'm pretty busy here," Kono said, sounding cold, but she seemed to be a bit more at ease.

Casey nodded. "Alright... Well, I'm staying at the Hilton, so... call me... if you can."

Kono muttered a "yeah" and she just watched as her sister turned on her heels, walked through the glass doors and walked away.

She stood there without moving for a few seconds; Casey, her sister, had returned — and she had just left again. Not that she was leaving Hawaii because she said she would be staying for a while, but still... And deep down, Kono felt scared. She was scared that Casey was back. She was scared that Casey would leave and never say a word again. She was scared shitless for and because of her sister.

When she finally moved again, Kono had pulled herself together and all the fear she felt just seconds ago, were locked behind heavy doors.

"Alright, what else did you guys find?" she asked Chin and Danny as she stood next to them. The two men just exchanged a glance but decided to go with the flow and not pry into her business. Even Danny.

**—H50—**

Later that day, the case they were working was closed, meaning they all went for a drink after work; Kono too but, when she realized where they were going, she wished she had turned it down and gone home instead, like she was planning to. She stopped dead in her tracks when they got to the Hilton Hawaiian Village.

"C'mon, cuz... Let's go."

Kono hesitated. She heard the soft and melodious voice of her sister echoing in her ears _"I'm staying at the Hilton"_ and there she was, at the Hilton.

Chin knew why she was hesitant, so he put an arm around her shoulder making his cousin walk again. "We deserve this."

"Yeah," Danny said, trying to sound supportive, although he also had a pretty good idea why she froze. "C'mon. It's one beer."

Steve also looked at her and half smiled. It was a particular tough case on Steve since the victim was one of his Navy buddies.

He'd joined the team soon after his duties at the court were done so he could help them with the investigation and, thanks to the brilliant work of his friends, they wrapped it, giving the family of Lieutenant Lewis closure.

Kono looked at the three men around her. One simple thought crossed her mind and got her bitting on her lip. They were part of her family. They wereohana.

_Ohana._

One single word made Kono feel something ache in her chest and she had to take a deep breath. Ohana reminded her of Casey... and that was a very delicate and quite painful subject for her. Although, despite the pain, she tried to smile at them — and succeeded. It was a bit of a forced smile but it was still a smile. Steve noticed her not so cheerful reaction though.

"What is it?" he asked when they got a table and accommodated themselves; his brows were now slightly furrowed. "Something wrong? Did you forget your wallet?" he joked, trying to lighten the mood.

It worked. Kono smiled, this time, less forced and more genuine.

"Nah, that's not her, buddy," Danny added cheerfully. "That's you," he said pointing at Steve, who was ordering the beers. Steve frowned at Danny, but they were all smiling. Even Kono still appeared to be a bit uncomfortable but not completely. "So... What's bothering you?"

As the waitress put the beers on their table, Kono reached for one of the bottles and took a long swig from it.

"It's my sister," she said after a while. "She's back..." Kono knew that Steve was the only who still didn't know about Casey, so, there wasn't a point in creating any suspense or trying to hide it — he would find out sooner or later anyway.

Steve frowned when he heard Kono's words. "I'm sorry. Your... your sister? I didn't know you have a sister." He then looked at Danny, expecting to see him just was surprised as he was, but his partner looked pretty calm. He then addressed him a look that silently asked "did you know that?", but Danny didn't have time to react since Kono, who had been swirling her bottle and looking intently at it, said: "Her name is Casey, and she came to the HQ earlier today..."

Steve fixed his eyes on the youngest Five-0 as if waiting for her to continue, but she didn't. The former Naval Intel Officer didn't need to use his skills to know that something very wrong happened between the two sisters...

"So... Did you guys talk?" Chin Ho asked when silence started to threaten to settle.

Kono just shook her head negatively. "Not really..."

"And why is that?"

She sighed. "I... don't know."

That wasn't true. Kono knew why she didn't talk to her sister or about her for that matter; she just didn't want to revive her ghosts, poke on her still open wounds and she did not want to broadcast to everyone what she had been through nine years ago. They were _ohana_ , but she didn't think she was ready to do that yet... Casey's return was so— sudden, unexpected, and it caught her off guard.

But Chin knew Kono — he'd been there with her when Casey hadn't come back —, and so did Steve and Danny; not at the same deep level that Chin was familiar with the whole "missing sister" situation but they knew her, and they knew she was avoiding the subject, which was not like Kono.

"She's here, isn't she?" Danny asked. "At the Hilton?"

Kono looked at Danny with a blank expression in her eyes.

"I heard her say it as she was leaving," he explained calmly.

Kono nodded in confirmation, even though it wasn't exactly necessary. "Yes... She is here."

There was a moment when no one said a word and silence fell like a thick blanket upon the four of them. But Danny didn't allow it to go much further.

"I'm sorry. I know this is none of my business but... What happened?" The blonde's curiosity was more than he could bear. "I mean, from where I'm standing, you're kind of like— avoiding her..."

Kono looked up at Danny and found that he wasn't the only one with his eyes locked on her. Steve was too, and Chin, but her cousin knew, he was just... making sure she wouldn't snap.

"It's kind of a long story," Kono said shifting in her chair. Danny thought she wasn't gonna say a thing but, a handful of seconds later, Kono spoke again. "Nine years ago, Casey's father died—"

Steve frowned and interrupted Kono right there. "Casey's father? I thought you said—"

"Casey is my sister, but not biologically," explained the young Asian woman and Steve nodded, showing he understood that. Kono's sister was adopted. "Anyways, nine years ago Casey's father died. She hadn't seen him since she was three years old, but they'd kept in touch for a while; so, when she learned about his death, she wanted to go to his funeral and everything... So she did. She took a flight to England, and never returned... Even though she promised she would," she added. There was a hint of bitterness in her tone.

That actually made a lot of sense as to why none of them had heard of her prior to this moment. Maybe Kono had held onto the idea that they weren't that close, so that could explain why she left; maybe like that she could detach herself from the fact that her sister had left, with a promise to return, and hadn't.

"Did she ever tell you why she didn't come back?" Steve asked curiously.

Kono shook her head. "No."

He didn't ask anything else. He had quite a good idea why she didn't — and it looked like Kono held it against her sister, and still resented her for it.

Steve understood Kono's side; she was hurt, it was very understandable to anyone. But he didn't say anything. He kept himself neutral on that. First, because it wasn't like he was forced to pick sides; it was Kono's family matter, not his, and he didn't know squat about Casey. Second, because, in a way, he'd been there. He'd done it to his sister when their dad sent the two of them back to the mainland. He left and never spoke to Mary for longer than nine years...

For a brief moment, Steve thought how complicated things between siblings could be. There was himself and Mary, Danny and Matt, and now Kono was part of the club as well. Some "fun" club...

Danny seemed to have been thinking exactly the same way because next thing they all heard was him saying that Kono should talk to Casey.

"You know, it is better for you to sulk and suffer because of something you know rather than something you don't know... I mean, maybe she had a reason."

"She didn't call," Kono said coldly. "For nine freakin' years there was not a single phone call, not even one single letter with just one sentence. There was nothing." She breathed deeply. "There was just a whole bunch of nothingness."

Danny looked carefully at her. Kono was usually all smiles and jokes, but today... Today he was being introduced to a whole different side of her — she was closed, and a somewhat bitter.

"Well," he said after a while. "At least that's what I think," he said with a casual shrug.

After that, they changed the subject to something a lot lighter and started discussing their plans for the weekend.

Danny had promised to take Grace surfing and he invited Kono to tag along — since she used to be Grace's surf teacher and, according to the little girl, "Auntie Kono is amazing". Somehow, Steve got involved and said he would accompany the, and Chin as well, since Malia would probably be on-call that weekend.

They were just cheerfully discussing how Danny's weekend with Grace suddenly turned into a weekend with Grace and all his co-workers when Kono excused herself.

Chin had seen that, even though his cousin was smiling and talking, she wasn't exactly there. And, when she left the table, he followed her with his eyes only. He knew where she was going...


	3. 'Round my hometown

Casey was sitting next to the window, with a mug of tea in her hands. She'd been sitting there for so long she had lost track of time already... It must be late though.

She reached for her phone, which she had put next to her feet and learned it was already 11:05 p.m.

Pretty late, she thought to herself as she let her head fall back so it was resting against the cold wall. It was only 10 a.m. back in London but, as she hadn't had any decent sleep since she left the Old Continent — she didn't really consider the couple of hours in which she dozed off during the long and dreadful flight — she was tired. She was exhausted and not exactly looking forward to flying again, sooner than expected, though not before visiting her parents.

Mr. and Mrs. Kalakaua weren't Casey's biological parents, but they were her _ohana_ — they were the only family she had ever known. She couldn't ask for more loving and caring parents than Ailani and Kimo Kalakaua, she loved them to death. She really did. But Casey could only wonder how badly she had hurt them, especially her mother when she didn't come back...

She probably would be as mad as Kono...

Casey sipped from her hot tea and sighed. She was one messed up human being; yes sir. Her biological mother had died soon after delivering her; her father tried really hard to provide a home for her but failed; she was adopted by this amazing Hawaiian family and she got to learn the meaning of the word "happiness" but then, she sort of ruined everything when she left for her father's funeral... and never returned.

Thinking about that made Casey, for the second time in less than twenty four hours, consider taking the next available flight home. She broke her sister's heart to pieces nine years ago, probably her parents' as well... was it fair for her to come back now? After all this time?

Even though Casey's answer to that question was no, she was still unsure... It didn't feel right to leave without seeing them either.

"Why did I think it was a good idea in the first place?" she muttered as she pressed her forehead against the cold window.

The lights bringing life and color to the dark landscape were beautiful. The sound of the ocean and the music created by the waves that crashed on the shoreline was something that she'd missed dearly. Even when she got to go to some place that had beaches, it was never like Hawaii. Because there's no place like home...

Home. Casey didn't even know if she could still call it home...

Once again, she sighed tiredly. Then, after a few moments admiring the view, she stood up from her spot, put her tea on the coffee table in front of the couch and was heading to her bedroom when someone knocked on her door. Casey frowned.

"That's weird," she muttered to herself as she stopped in her tracks. She had been sort of waiting for Kono, but she didn't think she would show up...

Instinctively, Casey looked around for a moment as if examining her room looking for something. She always did that when she wasn't expecting anybody but, when she heard the knock again, she shook her head, dismissing whatever thoughts that were starting to form in her very imaginative mind.

Casey walked towards the white door, unlocked it and opened it.

Standing in the hallway was her sister. Kono had come after all. Without even noticing it, Casey held her breath.

"Hey," Kono said after a moment's silence in which both women basically stood there, looking at each other, not moving a muscle.

"Hi..."

"So..." Kono felt slightly awkward for appearing there without a word — well, Casey had basically done the same. She'd arrived at her work place completely out of the blue... but it was late. She put both her hands inside the back pockets of her jeans and bit on her lower lip. "Are you— busy?" Are you busy? What kind of question was that? Kono mentally scolded herself for it... Things shouldn't be like that between her and her sister. They never had any secrets — but then again, that was a long time ago. Things were so wrong and on so many levels...

Casey felt the awkwardness as well, and she felt stupid for leaving her sister outside. "No. No, not at all." She opened the door even further and invited her in. "Please."

As Kono stepped inside the room, Casey closed the door behind her.

"Can I get you anything? Water? Beer? Tea?"

"No, I'm, uh... I'm good. Thank you."

"Alright."

The awkwardness that had settled hours back didn't seem to wane with time. If anything, the two women seemed to be struggling with the uncomfortable silence that had so easily barged in and taken its place.

"I— I didn't think you'd come," Casey said weakly as she walked towards the couch; Kono followed.

"Honestly, I didn't think I'd come either," Kono admitted.

"I see," Casey said with a nod. She wasn't surprised, not with Kono's statement or how she said it, without hesitation. That was the Kono she knew; she was very opinionated and she would speak her mind whenever she felt like it. Kono was very honest. "What made you change your mind?"

Kono sat straight on the couch, one seat away from Casey.

"Well... I'm not quite sure..."

Casey nodded once again. "For what it's worth, I'm glad you're here," she said; the right corner of her lip sort of twitched in what could have been a smile. A very subtle and small smile.

Kono tried to smile back but that was just as successful as Casey's attempt to smile.

The Asian officer tried to hide her hurt feelings for as long as she could but finally they got the best of her.

"Why are you here, Casey? I mean, really... Why?" Kono shifted on the couch so she was looking straight at the blonde in front of her. "I tried to figure out why but... Explain it to me. You said you wanted to explain, here's your chance."

Casey pushed a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear as she sat back on the couch and crossed her legs in front of her. She was now facing Kono, but her eyes were fixed on the not so intricate pattern of the sofa. It was just plain brown.

"I came back, Kono, because I owed you an explanation." Casey slowly raised her eyes so she was finally looking at Kono's dark black eyes. And, man they were deep... "I made a promise and I didn't keep it; not right away—"

"Not right away?" Kono asked more than just a little annoyed. "You didn't keep it, period."

Casey inhaled deeply yet quietly. "You're right... I didn't. But it's not like I did it on purpose! You may not believe me, but I tried to get back. I tried to contact you and mom but..."

"But...?"

"I couldn't."

"You couldn't. Well, that is a very reasonable explanation." The sarcasm in Kono's voice couldn't go unnoticed. Kono was really upset; she had raised her tone without noticing and she was fidgeting. "Knock it off, Casey! How hard could it possibly be for you to pick up a goddamned phone, dial a freaking phone number and tell us you didn't want us in your life anymore? Huh?"

"That's not what happened!" Casey interjected just as loudly. "I've always wanted you in my life. I've always wanted to come straight back home and stay with you and mom and dad!"

"Then why didn't you?"

"Because there were some things I needed to do in London... Things I needed to handle... alone."

"And you couldn't have called? Not even on... on my birthday? Or mom and dad's? Hell, Casey!"

Casey sighed. It was beyond time to come clean.

"You remember when mom got that phone call from England that wasn't my father?"

"Obviously. It was when— when you learned about your father's death... I was there too."

"Yes, you were," Casey said with a nod. Kono had been there. She'd held her hand as she absorbed the news and she'd held her when she finally came to realize that her father wasn't gonna call anymore... Kono had been there to tell her that it was alright for her to be sad and cry... He had been her family too. And Kono supported her when she'd said she wanted to go to his funeral. "And you remember what you told me when I said I needed to say goodbye to him?"

Kono swallowed hard. There was an eerie calmness in Casey's voice that she couldn't quite put a finger on.

"I said _"you wanna go, go. Do what you need to do. Just..._ "

" _"_ _Just come back once you're done"_ ," said Casey, finishing what Kono was just saying.

"Don't tell me it took you this long..."

"I would have boarded on the very first plane back to Hawaii, Kono... Back to you, mom and dad, back where I belonged. I would. I was ready to do that after my dad's funeral... But then I learned something and I didn't. I learned something and I couldn't just turn my back on it, leave and pretend I didn't know... It wasn't right. It didn't _feel_ right."

Kono was getting anxious. What on Earth was Casey talking about? What the hell had happened? Had she been a mean bitch to her this entire time? Had she been sick? And her family — her biological family? Were they looking for her?

"Well, what was it?" Kono asked slightly exasperated.

"My father... he didn't die... He was murdered."

**—H50—**

For the next hour or so, Kono heard all about Casey's life. How she went to London for her father's funeral, learned that he didn't die of natural causes as she thought he did, how she finished school over there, went to Oxford, got a job so she could live and not only out of her father's inheritance.

She didn't come back because she needed to know who murdered her father.

"Even though he didn't raise me, it wasn't like he abandoned me," Casey said. "He knew he couldn't offer me all that I needed or whatever people say... So, he did what he thought that was the best for me... And I couldn't just ignore the fact that someone killed him. He was my father after all."

Kono nodded. It made sense. Everything that Casey said made perfect sense. Her mom taught them that _ohana_ , family is the most valuable thing in the world, and Casey was looking after his father, who was also part of her _ohana_. Even from a distance...

"I'm... sorry to hear that, Casey..."

The blonde smiled at her. "It's okay. I mean, it's not really but..."

"Why didn't you call?" Kono asked, shifting on the couch. "Why didn't you say that before... I could've—"

"Gone there? That's exactly why I didn't say anything," said Casey and Kono frowned. "I knew that, the moment I told you all of this, you would find a way to go there. And I couldn't do that to you. You were on your way to become a pro-surfer and I couldn't just drop this news on you and blow your career. I'd have felt awful."

"Well, I busted my knee a couple of years later," Kono said blankly. "My career on the surf was already done..."

"I heard about that..."

Kono furrowed her eyebrows curiously. "You did?"

"Obviously. Just because I wasn't in Hawaii, didn't mean I didn't know about what was happening here... Besides, I always Googled you," Casey said with a half smile and, this time, Kono smiled too.

"I'm really sorry... I wanted to call you and I wanted to come back before but... there were a lot of things happening, and there were so many things I wanted to talk to you about but I didn't think I could and didn't want to be that much of a burden so days passed, weeks, months..."

"Years."

"I screwed up. Big time and I know that. I've always known that. And I didn't have the courage to do— exactly what I'm doing... right now."

Kono looked at Casey seriously. "Yet, here you are," said the Asian woman. "Right now."

"Yeah," she said nervously. "Can you believe that?"

"Hardly," Kono said honestly. They looked at each other in complete and utter silence. "But I'm glad that you finally came back," she added with a genuine smile and a happy expression plastered on her face.

Casey felt like her heart skipped a beat and she chuckled. She'd been pretty nervous until now, and she still couldn't believe what had just happened. And when the two siblings hugged each other, Casey could feel a tear falling down her cheeks.

After that, Kono and Casey still talked for hours. The Asian woman completely forgot about her team downstairs, but she had a decent excuse... They were _ohana_ as well; they would understand.


	4. Ohana

"Danno, where's Auntie Kono?"

It was almost nine in the morning and Danny and Gracie were at Ala Moana Beach Park. Even Steve and Chin were there... but Kono wasn't.

"I don't know, Monkey," said Danny confused. "But I think she's coming."

"Did you tell her we'd be here?" asked Grace, looking around. "At _eight_?"

"I did. Of course I did. What do you think?"

Grace was still trying to find Kono in the middle of the people when Danny turned to Chin.

"Did you talk to her?"

Chin shook his head. "No."

"Do you think something happened between her and her sister?" Steve asked carefully.

It was pretty obvious to all of them that last night, when Kono excused herself out of the bar, she went to see Casey.

The three men had stayed there until a bit after midnight. After that, they had just assumed she had either gone already or was still talking to her sister, so they left and Chin texted her telling that.

"I couldn't say," Chin admitted, slightly worried. "I know just as much as you do. I haven't heard from her since last night..."

The three men exchanged a glance. Kono was different last night. Steve and Danny couldn't blame her though; they had their own fair share of issues with their own siblings... Family is everything, but it can get— messy sometimes.

They were quietly debating whether they should go after Kono or not when Grace's voice pulled them out of their thoughts.

"Auntie Kono!"

Chin, Danny and Steve looked at Grace and who she was waving at. Kono was standing a few yards away from them. She heard Grace's call and started to walk towards them.

"Hey Gracie," she said as she joined them. Kono smiled at the ten year old girl, who was smiling back.

"We were waiting for you!"

"I know, I know... Sorry I'm late," Kono said as she kneeled on the ground and hugged the little Williams. "I slept in."

Grace didn't seem to mind the delay now that Kono was there; she was smiling with her eyes also, but Kono noticed that she got curious when she saw the woman standing behind her. Grace didn't ask, but Kono could see the question sparkling in her eyes.

She waved with her hand and the blonde woman took a step forward, to stand next to Kono.

"Gracie, this is Casey," she said indicating the blonde that had also crouched down and was smiling at her.

"Hi," said Grace with a small smile. "Are you Auntie Kono's friend?"

"Well, she is my best friend," Casey answered. "But she's also my sister."

Grace frowned. "Really?" She looked from Kono then to Casey again. "You two don't look alike..."

"That's because our moms and dads were different... Well, at least until I was three years old."

"So... you're adopted?"

Kono and Casey heard a soft gasp that Kono knew was from Danny. Neither of them minded the question though.

"That would be correct," Casey answered softly and smiling.

"Then you got lucky," Grace said honestly.

"Yes, I did. I got very lucky."

"You talk like mommy." Grace pointed out Casey's British accent. "Are you from England?"

"As a matter of fact I am," Casey replied cheerfully. She never thought she had a way with children, but that girl was adorable. "Is your mommy from England too?"

Grace nodded. "She lived in London. I think she was born there too..."

"What a coincidence. I was born and lived in London as well!"

"But, how...?"

At that moment Danny intervened. "Hey, Monkey... Why don't we let Auntie Kono's sister breathe for a moment, huh?"

Grace looked up at her dad and nodded in agreement and held her father's hand.

"I'm sorry about the Interrogation 101," he said a bit embarrassed, but Casey waved that off.

"It's okay. I don't really mind," she told the blonde guy as she stood up. She remembered him from the day before.

"I think you already know Casey," Kono said looking at Danny. "Casey, this is Danny."

Danny reached out a hand and she shook it. "Aloha," she said with a smile.

"Aloha."

"So, turns out my sister still works here," she said playfully, remembering Danny's words when she first "met" him. "You almost sent me back to London yesterday."

"I'm so sorry. I had no idea..."

Casey smiled. "It's alright. No one ever does," she said reassuringly.

"Well, this one you already know," Kono indicated Chin with a wave of her hand.

Casey hugged Chin tight. She had no idea why he didn't hold any grudges against her but she was glad he didn't. Chin Ho was like an older brother for her, and, if he had hated her just as much as Kono had when she first saw her, she doesn't know if she would've stayed two more minutes in that place...

"And this," Kono added once Casey let go of Chin. "Is Steve."

Casey followed Kono's hands and her eyes landed on a man she had never seen before.

"Hi." Casey offered him a hand.

"Aloha. It's nice meeting you," he said as he shook her hand.

"I can say the same..."

Steve tried to keep a straight face but deep down, he was just as surprised as Grace when he met Casey. If he hadn't known she was her sister, he wouldn't have guessed, not even in a million years. She was adopted so that was an explanation. But, more than just that, there was something else about her...

"Auntie Kono let's go!"

Once again, Grace got their attention. She was holding a surf board and had held Kono's hand.

"Sure, sure... Hey, Chip. Get the boards?"

"Of course I did. They're right there."

Kono took one of the two boards and headed to the water with Grace.

"Hey, feel free to join us anytime you want," Kono shouted over her shoulder.

"If you gentlemen would excuse me," Casey said, shortly after she pulled off the T-Shirt she was wearing, grabbed her long board and headed to the water.

Chin, Danny and Steve watched as the three girls hit the water.

They didn't go further into the ocean because of Grace, but that didn't keep them from having fun. Kono and Casey sat on their boards and coached Grace; eventually they ventured onto the big waves but, mostly, they were like children, splashing water on one another and trying to pull the other from the board. If anything, it looked like they were enjoying that even better.

"She looks different," Danny said. He was talking about Kono.

"She does and she doesn't," Chin said as he watched Kono paddling towards a wave further out while Casey stayed with Grace closer to the shoreline. "I've seen Kono with Casey and I don't think she's different, but you two haven't..."

Danny and Steve nodded. They maybe hadn't seen Kono and Casey back then, but they had a pretty good idea of how that must have been.

**—H50—**

Casey got out of the water about an hour later. Living in England for the past few years had sort of made her forget how it was to lay under the sun.

So she headed back to the sand, found a place under a palm and sat there, enjoying the cool breeze, the lack of direct sun over her head and the view. The view. There was nothing like that view in the whole world.

Casey got so caught up that she barely noticed when someone approached her quietly.

"I assume you two worked out your differences yesterday," Chin said casually as he sat next to her.

Casey looked at him a bit startled, but mostly happy. "We did... We talked last night."

Chin smiled at her. He was glad that Casey had returned. Even after all this time, he knew that Kono was still not over it... He knew he wasn't. She was family so Chin had missed her, and also, worried about her.

"So, mind if I ask you what really happened?"

Casey pushed a strand of her slightly damp hair behind her ear, and told him what she told Kono a few hours back.

"I'm so sorry to hear about your father," Chin said softly after hearing her story.

"Don't be," she told him; Casey had had her eyes fixed on the water until now, but she looked at Chin with a very soft expression. "I mean, he didn't deserve to die like that but... I like to think he's in a better place now. Sounds clichéd but..."

"I get it... I feel like that too." Chin felt Casey's curious eyes on him. "Auntie Mele passed in 2010," he explained and Casey's eyes drifted away from Chin's once more.

"Kono mentioned it..."

"Did she say she asked for you?"

Casey felt like there was a hand in her chest and it was squeezing her heart. She had loved Auntie Mele so much...

"No..."

"Don't worry," Chin said squeezing her shoulder softly. "She didn't think any less of you." Casey looked at Chin and he noticed her eyes were getting wet. "She said: _"when you see Casey again, tell her that she did what she had to do... Tell her that I've always carried her in my heart and always will."_ "

Casey looked away again.

"I still can't believe Auntie Mele is not..."

"It was probably better this way... She was suffering a lot... Like you said, she's in a better place now."

He couldn't help but notice that Casey had matured so much and it was beyond the fact that it's been nine years since he last saw her.

She was only a teenager when she left and now, she was a grown woman. But still, for someone who's twenty five years old, Casey seemed older than that... If anything, Chin believed his little cousin was now a very tough and resilient woman. And she proved him right when, a minute later, she took a deep breath and sat straight.

"I have missed a lot, haven't I?" she asked looking at Chin again.

"A little bit."

"I can't believe I missed Kono's graduation from the Police Academy, or mom's 50th birthday... I can't believe I missed your wedding!"

Chin looked at her a bit surprised.

"Kono told me," she explained smiling at him. "Congratulations, cuz!" Casey beamed as she opened her arms and hugged Chin.

"Mahalo."

"I am so, so happy for you... and Malia," she quickly added.

"Thank you. She'll be happy to see you again," Chin said cheerfully. He always smiled like a fool when he was talking about his wife, just like he always got happier when he was with Malia the first time they were together.

Casey smiled. She had missed a lot, but it sure felt great to be there now.


	5. Some things never change

It was half past eleven when they all left the beach; Chin had invited them over to his place for lunch, so, that's where they were heading to.

Kono had been there before, but for Steve, Danny, Grace and Casey, that was the first time at Chin Ho's new house.

"Nice place, Kelly," Danny said when he was a few steps from the front porch, where Chin was unlocking the door. "This is what I call an upgrade."

Chin smiled at Danny as he opened the door, allowing everyone inside.

"Thanks, brah," Chin told Danny as they walked in. "It was actually my parents'... It was too big for me then, but now..."

"Now you'll need more room for the little Chins and Malias that are to come, right?" Steve said playfully as he walked inside the house.

Chin's new place was a two-storey house with a private beach at the end of the backyard; kind of like Steve's, except it was a bit bigger.

"Hey, out of curiosity, what happened to your old house?" Danny asked. He was still searching for a decent place since he doubted he'd leave this Island anytime soon...

**—H50—**

Casey sat on Chin's lanai and watched as her cousin stood next to the grill where he was making their lunch; he was actually more invested in his conversation with Danny rather than really cooking but barbecue wasn't like risotto, which needed attention...

Then her eyes wandered to her sister.

Kono was playing some card game with Grace. Casey smiled. Her sister had a way with people; she could be a hardass sometimes but Kono was friendly, so sure kids would like her immediately...

Casey brought the beer to her lips and drank from it. It was hot and the cool beverage relieved the heat a bit. She placed her empty bottle on the small table made of something that resembled wicker as she contemplated the image before her eyes.

Some things never change...

She couldn't believe she had actually spent nine years away from this. This was where she belonged, this was where she felt most at home... With her sister. With her ohana...

Casey smiled and with that thought in mind, she leaned her head back. Maybe it was tiredness because of the surfing, maybe she had been in the sun for way too long, maybe it was both or maybe it was none of those things and was something else entirely different but, as she sat there, quietly, Casey started to feel a heaviness in her head.

Unconsciously, she let out a tired sigh and closed her eyes. She was still feeling the time difference, but it wasn't just that; there was something else...

Casey didn't notice how oblivious to the world she was until someone talked to her.

"Are you alright?"

She cracked her eyes open just a bit and found herself looking at the tall, tanned, tattooed guy from the beach... Steve was his name.

"Yeah," she muttered as she shifted in the armchair she was almost lying on and sat straight. "I'm alright... Why?"

"Because I just asked if you wanted another beer and you didn't answer," he explained indicating the empty bottle on the table. "Or move at all for that matter..."

Casey ran a hand across her face.

"Sorry. I suppose I dozed off," she said apologetically, but Steve waved it off.

"Don't worry... I assume you're just not used to the time difference yet."

"Is it that obvious?" she asked, her voice loaded with the tiredness she just couldn't hide anymore.

"Pretty much," Steve said frankly, but with a smile. "The dark circles under your eyes won't let me say otherwise."

Casey smiled too as she rubbed her eyes.

"But, it's almost a twelve hour difference between Hawaii and London so, it's perfectly understandable," Steve added promptly.

"Yeah... But still, I'm feeling like such an old lady," she said as she tried to suppress a yawn but failed.

Steve couldn't help but notice that her accent showed up a lot more when she was tired.

"You should get some rest. I think it'll take a while for them to get anything done," Steve said indicating Chin and Danny.

They were now focusing on the steaks, but Casey needed to agree with Steve, maybe they wouldn't eat anything for the next ten minutes or so. But still, she shook her head.

"Nah. Not a good idea," she told him. "If I sleep, I won't wake up. And if someone wakes me up, I'll get grumpy and that wouldn't be nice. Besides, if I sleep now, how will I get used to this new time zone?"

"Point taken."

"Right... So, I'm gonna accept that beer now," she said looking at Steve.

He crossed the lanai, pulled a longboard from the cool box that they had put there so it wouldn't lay in the sun, opened it and handed it to her.

"Thank you very much," she said before she sipped from it.

"You're welcome."

"You do know you can sit, right?" Casey said looking at Steve who was standing there, leaning against the doorframe statuesquely. "No one's gonna charge you if you do..."

Steve looked at her; she indicated the three empty places beside her. He was just about to sit when Casey spoke again.

"Although, I might just tell you to stop being veiled."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Steve asked when he finally sat by her side. His eyebrows were furrowed with curiosity.

Casey casually drank from her beer before answering. "One doesn't have to be a genius to know that you have quite a few unanswered questions about my sudden appearance," she said looking at him with an expression just as blank as his white T-shirt. "Also, Kono told me you were curious," she indicated Danny as she said that.

Steve smiled, maybe out of nervousness, but odds were it was out of something else. "Alright, you got me. What's your story?"

"Don't you think it's too soon for us to share our sad stories and pour our hearts out?" Casey asked tilting her head slightly to her right, towards Steve.

He squinted a little. "What makes you think I have a sad story?"

Casey once again brought her bottle to her lips and swallowed a small amount of the liquid as she looked ahead. "Everybody has their own sad story," she said looking anywhere but him.

Steve saw what seemed to be a small smile playing on her lips, but there was something wrong. It wasn't happy... If anything, Steve believed it was strangled, perhaps forced.

**—H50—**

They had lunch around 1 p.m.. By that time, Casey already had a headache due the lack of sleep but she didn't complain. Besides, she was with Chin and Kono, and she had got to know their friends a bit, Steve and Danny.

"Hey, are you okay, Chip?" Kono asked as they were the only ones sitting at the table.

Chin, Steve and Danny had excused themselves to watch TV. They were talking about football — probably about baseball as well — and Danny had mentioned there would be a rerun of, using his own words, "an unbelievably great game between the Yankees and the Rangers that would teach them how to really appreciate the sport". Steve and Chin had agreed after a bit of a banter. They did enjoy baseball, they just liked teasing the blondie better.

"What?" Casey asked absent mindedly. She had been playing with her food more than actually eating it.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah," she said automatically. "Yes, I'm fine."

Kono frowned.

"You really don't seem fine to me, what is it?"

Casey sighed and finally let go of her fork. She wasn't hungry anymore.

"I guess it's just _jet lag_ , and my head is hurting a bit."

"Well, let's go get you an Aspirin and you can crash in Chin's guest room," Kono said pushing her plate away and standing up. "I'm sure Chin won't mind."

"Well, he won't but I will... Do you think he'll be offended if I leave?"

"I'm sure he won't, but... mind if I ask why?"

Casey took a deep breath and took the glass that she'd been drinking soda from. She swirled the liquid and stared at the mini vortex that she'd created there for a while.

Kono waited for Casey's answer patiently. She knew, just by looking at her, that she was still considering her next move... Casey was that careful.

"I wanted to go see mom and dad," she said finally.

She'd been having conflicted thoughts about it ever since her plane took off back in London, but she had worked things out with Kono... and she really missed her parents.

"Oh." Kono was slightly surprised. It would be obvious that Casey would want to visit mom and dad, she just didn't know why she'd hesitated. "Sure!" She added in a much excited tone. "That sounds great. They'll love to see you again!"

"You think?" Casey asked carefully.

"I know," Kono said reassuringly.

"You don't think that... if I show up, I might... you know, give them a heart attack?" Casey flinched a bit as she spoke these words softly.

"A heart attack?" Kono was again surprised. "Hell no! Their beloved daughter is back, how would that cause a heart attack?"

"Beloved? I think I'm more of a prodigal daughter rather than beloved..."

Kono punched Casey's upper arm softly and the blondie rubbed it while frowning at the Asian.

"Don't be stupid," Kono said playfully. "They don't think of you like that..."

"They should... I know I do."

"Enough with the nonsense. Just, let's get you an Aspirin and we'll go pay mom and dad a surprise visit."

Kono had already stood up and was pulling Casey with her.

"Woah! Slow down, Dale. Not a surprise visit. We'll call them first, and by 'we', I obviously mean you."

Kono rolled her eyes.

"Whatever you say, Chip. Just, let's go already, huh? We're wasting daylight here."

Casey gave a smile and obediently followed Kono.

They spoke to Chin and explained the reason they were leaving that early. As usual, he understood perfectly and they even agreed to have dinner some day, when neither Malia nor Chin were working.

She said her goodbyes to Steve and Danny — Grace had fallen asleep quite a long time ago —, hugged Chin one last time and then followed Kono to her red cruiser.

Casey found herself sitting quietly in the passenger seat of Kono's car. There was still a lot in her head, mainly doubts as to whether it was a good idea or not to show up like this, if her mom and dad wouldn't be very disappointed on her... Then she looked at the woman who was humming along with a song that was playing, and she smiled.

"Thank you."

Kono looked at Casey with curious eyes.

"What for?" asked the Asian as they stopped at a red light.

"For allowing me to come back into your life again... It was very... kind of you."

"I didn't," Kono said simply. Casey's eyes widened with surprise for a moment, but it vanished when she looked deep in Kono's dark eyes. "You never really left..."

"But I did..."

"Well, you did take a very long leave of absence, but... you didn't really leave. Or at least I never counted you out."

Casey smiled slightly embarrassed and looked at her hands that were resting on her knees.

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

"I really missed you, you know?"

"I know," Kono offered her a wide open and genuine smile as the red turned to green. "I missed you too..."


	6. Change of plans

"So, what's between you and blondie?" Casey asked Kono the next morning as they had breakfast.

After visiting their parents, which was the best thing she'd done the entire day, Kono stopped at the Hilton only so that Casey could pick up her stuff. They had planned on going to the North Shore the next day and Kono insisted that Casey should stay with her and not at a hotel...

"What blondie?" Kono asked, eating her very own pancakes that Casey had made that morning. They were delicious, but she would never admit that that _keiki_ was a better cook than she was. "What are you talking about?"

"You know what I'm talking about."

"Do not," Kono said, honestly oblivious to whatever it was that Casey was talking about. "But, since you said it... What's with the blonde hair?" she asked pointing at Casey's hair.

"Oh, it was a phase," Casey replied with a shrug as she pulled it on a pony tail. "But don't change the subject..."

"I told you," Kono said as she stood up and headed to the kitchen, taking her plate and Casey's with her. "I have no idea what you're talking about... What blondie?"

"That one from the beach yesterday," Casey said casually as she followed with the empty cups.

"Danny?" Kono almost dropped the empty plates in the sink.

"Danny... Precisely. What's between the two of you?"

"Nothing," Kono replied more than slightly surprised. "What makes you think there's something?"

"Oh, I don't know," Casey said as she put the glasses in the dish washer, along with the empty plates that Kono had forgotten about, and pushed it closed with her foot. "Maybe because he's cute, and totally your type... Maybe?"

Kono furrowed her eyebrows. "We work together... and he's not my type."

Casey glanced at Kono with the corner of her eyes. "Mhmm... right."

"What are you smirking at? He's not."

"He is."

"He is not."

"He is!" Casey said as they got back to the living room where their boards and everything were. "Cute, blonde, surfer looks with a bit of an attitude? Definitely your type."

"What are you talking about? I've nev—"

"Never? Really? How about Bennett Bass? And don't even try to deny it," Casey said as she headed to the guest room so she could change into a bikini.

"How on Earth do you remember Ben?" Kono shouted from her own bedroom. "It was forever ago!"

"I have an excellent memory... And you had a thing for him!"

"I did not!"

"Really, Kono? Would you really lie to my face like that?"

"Alright," Kono said as she passed by Casey's room. "Maybe I did like him a bit..."

"A bit? Kono, aren't you ashamed of yourself? Lying like that without even blushing? C'mon… I thought you two would end up together like a couple," Casey said as she left her room.

"Yeah, that didn't happen..."

"But Danny..."

"Oh, just drop it, Chip. Let's go. I wanna get to the beach before it gets crowded."

Casey smirked as she followed Kono.

"Oh, you are so busted, Dale..."

"God, you're such a child," Kono said rolling her eyes.

**—H50—**

Kono and Casey got to the Pipeline before seven in the morning. Kono usually liked to hit the beach sooner but Casey wouldn't wake up before six — and she didn't feel like waking her either...

"Alright, are you sure you can handle it, Chip?"

Both women were looking at the waves and they were nothing like yesterday's ... Yesterday, they had glassy surfing conditions at Ala Moana; today, at the Pipeline, surfing conditions were challenging, the kind of challenge that most would shy away from. And, basically, that's what they were seeing... Although there were a few surfers there, not many were in the sea...

"You know, you can always give up. No one's gonna blame you, _sistah_ ," Kono said teasingly.

Casey had her longboard and was staring at the ocean. The waves were easily three times her height.

"Nah... I didn't come to Hawaii to chicken out now," Casey said with a huge smirk on her face.

Kono grinned back. "Alright then!"

The two women grabbed their gear and were just sprinting towards the ocean when Kono suddenly stopped.

"Oh, come on!" Casey cried when she noticed that Kono wasn't following. "Don't tell me you're quitting..."

"No, I just need to—" Kono didn't finish the sentence. She had pulled her phone from the back pocket of her shorts and saw who was calling. "Oh, come on... Seriously?"

Casey frowned. "What is it?" she asked, but Kono didn't answer her; she answered her phone instead.

"Kono."

Casey looked at Kono curiously as she watched her sister's expression go from annoyed to resigned then to serious.

"Okay. I'm on my way."

Kono tapped on some buttons and shoved the phone back in her pocket.

"I'll have to take a rain check on our surfing," she said sadly. "It was my boss on the phone... Gotta work."

Casey was bummed but she didn't stay like that too long. She was actually kind of used to it; her father, Kimo Kalakaua was a cop and she had lost count of how many weekends she couldn't go surfing with them because he needed to work. "Relax, it's okay. We can do it some other time..."

"Thanks."

They rushed back to the car, strapped the boards on their rack and, less than ten minutes after they got there, they were already leaving.

**—H50—**

The Five-0s' new case was in Pūpūkea, so Kono got there quite rapidly. For obvious reasons, Casey went with her.

"I know this isn't how you planned to spend your Sunday," Kono said as she killed the engine of her car behind Danny's Camaro. "But I promise I'll check everything here and I'll get you back home, alright?"

"No worries, beef curry," Casey said as Kono was leaving the car. "I'll wait. It's not like I have a lot to do today anyways..."

"I'll try to be fast," Kono promised as she was heading towards the entrance of the fancy house.

"Try to do it right!" Casey shouted from the inside of the car.

She stayed there for a couple of minutes. After that, Casey decided she didn't need to wait for Kono inside the car so, she jumped out of it.

It was a beautiful day in Hawaii, but that was just stating the obvious. Most of the days were beautiful on that Island; even bad days weren't all that bad.

She was just leaning next to the car and admiring the view when something caught her attention. Better yet, someone.

A car stopped near the house and a little girl hopped out of it. It wasn't exactly that that caught Casey's attention; it was actually the look on the girl's face when she saw that bunch of patrol cars in front of the car. She stared at them with an expression that made Casey frown.

A woman soon got out of the car, but she didn't look half as bewildered and lost as the, Casey guessed, five year old.

She walked with slow steps towards the house and an HPD officer said she couldn't go any further.

"But— what happened? Why all these police cars are here? What's going on?"

"Sorry."

Casey watched as the little girl held tightly onto her furry toy, a stuffed eagle, and seemed to be really scared. That's when she pushed herself away from the car and walked towards the woman.

"Excuse me," Casey said as she approached the confused woman. "Excuse me, ma'am."

"Yes?" The woman looked at her and Casey could discern curiosity and doubt in her eyes. Casey didn't think she lived there, but she asked her next question anyways.

"Hi. My name's Casey... Do you live here?"

The woman looked at Casey, then at the house, then at Casey again.

"No. No, I d— I don't..."

"Do you know who lives here?"

"Yes. The Evans's. We're... friends," she answered. "What happened?"

"Ma'am, what's your name?"

"Zoe. Zoe Chambers."

"Zoe... I can't tell you what happened precisely since I'm not one of them," Casey said indicating the few officers that were nearby. "But, as far as I'm aware, this is a crime scene... Is this your daughter?" Casey asked, now she indicated the frightened little girl that was standing behind Zoe. Once again, she doubted she was her child but she still asked.

"What? No... No, this is... This is Georgia's daughter. Mrs. Evans. Has something happened to her?"

_Great. That's just great_ , Casey thought to herself.

Kono didn't say a word about her work but, once they'd got there, she had a pretty good idea of what was happening.

"You know what? My sister is a cop and she's in there... I'll call her and see if I can get you any answers, okay?"

Zoe nodded and Casey did as she said. She pulled her phone from her pocket and called Kono. She answered after the second ring.

_"Casey, what is it?"_

"Hey, Kono... Look, what's going on in there?"

_"Casey, I can't—"_

"Tell me, alright. I get it. I just have a question... Is Georgia Evans okay?"

Casey looked over her shoulder, at Zoe. She was smart enough to take a couple of steps away so that she could talk to Kono without scaring the woman and the kid.

There was a moment of silence from Kono's end, followed by a surprised _"Why do you ask?"_

"Well, because there's a woman out here, Zoe Chambers, and she's with a little girl... She said the kid is Georgia Evans's daughter, and that Georgia lives here."

Casey heard a muffled curse; then Kono told someone else what she had just told her before replying with a very simple: _"Stay there. I'm coming"_ , which she knew meant she was coming out.

Casey ended the phone call and shoved her phone on her pocket as she went back to where Zoe was standing.

"Is Georgia dead?"

Zoe's question wasn't louder than a whisper and Casey knew she was doing it because of the little girl.

"I don't know, Mrs. Chambers, but someone's coming..."

As those words flew out of Casey's mouth, Kono and Danny showed up.

"Hey, are you Zoe Chambers?" Kono asked the woman and she nodded.

"Yes. What's going on?"

"Ma'am. I'm Officer Kono Kalakaua, Five-0."

"Detective Danny Williams," Danny said as they both showed her their badges. "Are you a friend of the Evans's, Mrs. Chambers?"

"Yes..."

"How long have you known them?" Kono asked looking intently at her.

"Two years, since they moved here... wha—"

"Mrs. Chambers, I think it's better if we speak somewhere else," Danny said and Kono looked at Casey. The little girl.

Zoe must have understood their maneuver too because she touched the side of the kid's head, who was currently squeezing the stuffed toy and the woman's leg.

"But Julie..."

"I'll watch her," Casey said promptly. "Don't worry," she told Zoe who seemed to be having second thoughts about that..

"It's fine. Julie will be fine," Kono reassured her while she and Danny walked Zoe to a more private place where they could talk about the Evans's, while Casey stayed with the little girl...


	7. Deaths and murders

Casey watched as Kono, Danny and Zoe headed towards the entrance of the house, but not for too long; she then looked at the little girl that was standing very quietly next to her. She didn't seem to understand what was going on...

"Hi, sweetheart," Casey said as she crouched to the ground so she and the little girl were at eye level. "How are you doing?"

The little girl just looked at Casey; she didn't say a word.

"My name is Casey," she said with a gentle smile, trying to ease the little girl's nervousness. "What's yours?"

"Julie," she answered shyly, like she wasn't sure she should be talking to her.

"Oh, hi Julie. You have pretty name, you know that?"

The girl nodded and her auburn pigtails gently brushed against her cheeks. Casey smiled.

"Of course you knew that... What about him," she said indicating the eagle that she was holding onto. "Does he have a name?"

"His name is Scotty."

"Scotty? That is very lovely," she told her, and then she turned her attention to the toy. "Hi there, Scotty... Does he bite?" she asked; her hand in the air, waiting for Julie's reaction.

She giggled and shook her head negatively. "No... Scotty is nice," she said softly.

"Oh, good Scotty," Casey said, petting the stuffed animal. She looked at Julie and saw the little girl smiling. "He's so lovely."

"He is," she said with a nod. "He has friends, too. Timmy and Nui... but, they're home." Julie indicated the big two-stored house behind Casey. "I didn't want to leave them, but mommy said I could only take one to Mrs. Chambers's..."

Casey noticed the sudden change of mood; Julie was now pouting and didn't look happy at all.

"Are mommy and daddy okay?" Julie asked, holding tightly onto the toy again.

"I don't know, sweetheart... I really don't know what's going on in there," Casey said softly.

"I'm scared," she said shakily. "I want mommy and daddy..."

"I know." Casey told her as she brushed Julie's cheek. "I know..."

Julie then launched an arm around Casey's neck and hugged her tightly.

Casey felt heaviness in her chest when she felt the little girl's body shaking and heard her sobs. She couldn't not feel bad for Julie; at such a young age to be going through this... it wasn't fair.

Casey hugged Julie back and tried to calm her down but she didn't say anything. She didn't say it was all right because it wasn't, and she didn't say it was gonna be okay because, even though it would eventually, it was too soon, and Julie needed her mommy and her daddy... So Casey just held her and tried to soothe her, but without saying one word.

**—H50—**

Kono and Danny didn't get a lot from Zoe.

 

_"Do you know if someone was holding grudges the Evans's?"_

_"No..."_

_"Do you know if they had any enemies, someone that would want to hurt them?"_

_"No.. They— they were so nice..."_

_"Have you noticed anything strange lately? Anything at all?"_

_"No... God, I can't believe they're dead..."_

_  
_

So, ultimately, they let her go. They didn't have any valid reasons to keep holding Zoe Chambers. Besides, she had an alibi and, mind that, she was taking care of the Evans's daughter. Apparently, they had something important last night...

"Alright... Thanks for your cooperation, Mrs. Chambers."

"Sure... But... what's gonna happen to Julie?"

Zoe, Danny and Kono turned to look where they had left Julie and Casey just moments ago and they saw the little girl holding onto Casey for dear life; her hands were clasped onto Casey's blonde hair.

"We'll take care of her while we try to contact a relative," Kono said as she kept looking at the two girls. By the looks of it, it wasn't just Julie who was affected by this whole thing...

Zoe seemed to resist a little but she agreed to it — not that she had any other options available to pick anyways.

"Alright... Can I...?"

"Sure," Danny said with an encouraging nod. "Go ahead."

Zoe walked with fast steps towards Julie. Casey noticed it and she convinced the little girl to let go a minute.

"Oh, honey..."

Casey wanted to tell the woman to hold it together because that girl didn't know what was happening but she didn't. She didn't because soon enough Zoe was holding Julie so tightly and saw how sad the woman was... At least she wasn't crying, which was good because it would only make Julie feel a lot more scared.

Then, they finally pulled apart and, for a moment, Casey feared that woman would just tell her. Or she'd say that everything was gonna be okay and, honest to God, if she did, Casey would slap her. Because you don't get a child's hope that high to just turn it to ashes minutes later. You just don't do it. Ever.

But Zoe didn't do any of that. She was wise. So, she just told her that she had to go, but if she needed anything, she could just ask someone to call her.

Julie nodded and Zoe placed a kiss on the girl's forehead before leaving. Not without sparing a glance at Casey before. It said "take care of her", and Casey nodded. It was only then that Casey noticed that Julie was holding her hand and wasn't showing any signs of letting go.

She also realized Kono and Danny were still there; she needed to talk to them and, since they were looking at her, she assumed they wanted to say something as well.

"Hey, Julie," Casey said as she stood up once again. "Let's go over there a minute, okay?"

Julie nodded in agreement and followed Casey.

"So? What is it?" she asked looking at Danny and Kono.

Then, Danny kneeled to the ground and started to talk to Julie, as if to distract her from hearing what Kono was about to say.

"You probably figured this by yourself, but Georgia Evans was in the house..."

Casey already knew it; she was smart enough to figure it out by herself. "And Mr. Evans?"

Kono made a very tiny movement with her head and Casey got her answer.

"What now?"

"We'll contact a relative for Julie, and we'll continue our investigation..."

Casey sighed. "Who's gonna be with Julie until then?"

"We'll take care of her until we find someone."

"We?"

"An HPD Officer will be with her 24/7."

"An HPD Officer? You don't mean it, Kono..."

Kono knew that look on her sister's face. She didn't like it...

"Casey, this is a—"

"I'll be with her," Casey cut off Kono's speech. "You can put an officer with us but I can be with her for a while."

Kono looked at Casey then at Danny. He'd been listening to the whole thing, even though they were trying to keep their voices low.

"I don't think that would be a problem," he said looking at the two Kalakauas.

"Alright then, but you two will stay where I can see you," Kono told Casey.

"Anything you say."

Kono waved at an officer that was standing nearby.

"You, watch them," she ordered. "If anything happens, report directly to me. And you," she turned to Casey. "Be careful... We don't know what we're dealing with here."

Kono still remembered this case they had, in which a woman was murdered; they suspected her husband — a former Navy SEAL — but, turned out it was the girl's biological father who killed the woman and wanted to take the kid... She didn't want to take any chances, not with another little girl and her sister involved.

"Don't worry. I'll be fine, just... find out who did this."

"We will."

**—H50—**

Casey and Julie waited until the Five-0s were done with the crime scene, then they drove with Kono back to the 'Iolani Palace.

"Kono, do you really think that this is a good idea?" Casey asked as soon as the stepped inside the Five-0s' Headquarters. Her eyes wandered through the whole place; she was quietly admiring the beauty of their headquarters but she was also frowning inwardly and outwardly a little. "I mean, is this really necessary?"

"I'm not having either of you out of my sight," Kono replied as she walked towards the Smart Table, where Steve, Danny and Chin were already gathered.

The three women arrived at last because Kono made a quick stop at her house so she could change into work clothes. Casey also thought it'd be a better idea if she changed the shorts for a pair of jeans and the nearly transparent shirt for something else.

"I know," Casey said following Kono with Julie holding her hand. "I get that, but... look at this." She was indicating the large room.

"This is the safest place right now, Casey..."

"I don't doubt that. But it's all made of glass," she pointed out. "Anyone can see anything here. From anywhere," Casey said and Kono understood what she was saying.

They had a child in that room. A child whose mother and father had been killed and she still didn't know. They'd have to go through the photos and discuss all the details from the crime scene...

"Damn, you're right," Kono hissed as she looked around.

"So...?"

"You can, uh— you can use my office."

Casey and Kono turned at the same time and looked at Danny. They were standing close enough to the table for anyone to hear them.

"Shut the blinds and the view's blocked. Besides, it has to be that one so you don't have a direct view to the screens here," he said indicating a room on the left, right behind Casey.

"Sounds good," she said checking the blinds and how far it was from the fancy computer. "You don't mind?"

"Not at all," Danny said shaking his head negatively. "Go ahead."

"Thank you," Casey said and then, she turned her attention to the little girl holding onto her hand. "Come one, Julie, let's find something cool that we can do, okay?"

"M'kay," replied Julie shyly as she strolled down the room with Casey, heading towards Danny's office.

The four Five-0s watched that scene.

" _Cuz_ , do you think this is a good idea?" asked Chin when both Casey and Julie vanished behind the closed blinds and Kono walked towards them.

"She volunteered."

"I know. And I know she's tough, but— do you think she can handle it? After everything she's been through?"

Kono bit on the inner part of her lower lip. She knew what Chin was talking about; Julie's parents had been murdered, just like Casey's father... And they knew that, when Casey was a teenager, she wasn't too good at compartmentalizing, but they didn't really know how she'd deal with it now...

"What are you guys talking about?" Danny asked curiously.

"Is there something we should worry about?" Steve questioned as he glanced towards Danny's office.

Kono and Chin exchanged a look. She understood the message perfectly: _you should tell them._

With a tired sigh, Kono explained what Chin was referring to.

"Casey's father didn't die," she said, keeping her voice low so the two girls inside the room wouldn't hear it. Steve and Danny instantly frowned.

"Thought you said—"

"He was murdered," she added, interrupting the obvious question that Steve was to ask.

Danny muttered an "oh" but Steve didn't say anything. He'd been there too and he had a pretty good idea why Chin was worried, after all, like Danny had pointed out many times during the first month after they met, Steve tended to take things personally when they were about family matters...


	8. Family matters

Danny and Steve were slightly surprised when they learned that particular detail about Casey's life, even though none of them knew too much about her... Casey was Kono's sister, and that was about everything they knew. Until now.

"She learned it when she went to his funeral," Kono added, knowing they would be curious about it — especially Danny. "And she didn't come back until it was all cleared out..."

Danny nodded, but Steve was still silent.

"Nine years?" Danny whispered the question.

And thank God he did so, because seconds later, Danny's office door opened and Casey left.

Chin and Steve were focused on the smart table, where Chin had started looking for information, such as the victim's background, but Danny and Kono were still sort of talking; they stared at Casey, who had just closed the door.

Casey looked at the four of them and frowned a bit when all eyes landed on her. As if taking that as their cue, all of them tried to look less conspicuous.

"Hey, something wrong?" Kono asked as she approached Casey. Danny had joined Steve and Chin on their research for information.

"I... don't think so," Casey said slowly. "Is everything okay here?" she asked looking at the three men that were doing their best to not overhear or to appear that they were listening to the two sisters.

"We do have a case to investigate so..."

"Right. About that, I have a question." Casey then forgot about them and focused on Kono. "Remember when we were little and dad always told us to watch out for anything out of the ordinary?"

Kono nodded. "I do."

"Alright. So... It might be nothing. I mean, dad was a cop and I already told you I worked at a private security company back in London, so I might be overreacting to all of this but... I think I saw something out of the ordinary."

Kono shifted on the same spot. The way Casey said those words, so seriously and glancing at the door of Danny's office, bothered her. "I'm listening."

"While I was with Julie and you and Danny were talking to Zoe... I saw a car," Casey said, once again, glancing over her shoulder.

"Okay... And why do you think that was out of the ordinary?"

"Because it passed by the house three times in a row, like... like it was driving around the block," she explained and noticed Kono's expression changed into a thoughtful one. "I could see three people inside the car, and the guy on the passenger seat... he didn't look very _aloha_ to me. I don't think they were looking for a parking spot near the beach either."

Kono's brain was suddenly working full speed.

"Can you remember any details about the car, or the men in the car?"

Casey nodded. "Sure. The car was an old Toyota 4Runner, I'm guessing 1989, like that one Uncle Liwai had except, instead of being brown, the one I saw was red-ish... License plate was DCM 931, Hawaii."

"Got the plate, cuz?" Kono asked looking over her shoulder.

"Already on it," Chin said. He was already going through the DMV's database. "Got it," he spoke as he stopped tapping on the buttons. "Red Toyota, 1989. According to the DMV, the Toyota was registered to David Kame... and isn't that interesting?"

"That was... great," Steve said as he uncrossed his arms and looked at the screens then at Casey. The three men looked surprised, which made Casey smile proudly inwardly.

Soon enough, though, Kono turned her attention back to Casey. "Okay. The men... anything?"

"Right. I didn't get to see the driver or the man in the back seat, but about the guy on the passenger seat... he had gray hair, broken nose, a scar on his face, looked very grumpy for a tourist... uh— not _kanaka maoli_..."

"How'd you know he's not _kanaka_? You were pretty far from the street..."

"How'd you know _he_ is not?" Casey asked annoyed pointing at Danny.

"Point taken."

There were some protests coming from — obviously — Danny's end but neither Kono nor Casey paid much attention to that. They just ignored it so Steve had to explain that _kanaka maoli_ meant Native Hawaiian.

"Then why can't they just say it? You know, in English? Why is it you people like talking in code near me?"

Steve just chuckled and ignored Danny, pretty much like Casey and Kono.

"I only noticed the car the second time they drove by and, by the time I was actually paying attention, they passed by too fast and I didn't get to see him very well."

"It's okay. I think we have enough. We'll check it and then we'll know for sure... thanks Chip," Kono said with a wide open smile. "I knew that creepy memory of yours would come in handy someday."

"Because I love you, I'll take that as a compliment," Casey said giving Kono a soft punch on the shoulder. "Now, I know you guys have work to do so I'll leave you alone..."

"Wait, Casey," Kono called before her sister could reach Danny's office door again.

"Yes?"

"Are you sure you're okay?" Kono took a tiny step towards her sister. Her eyes scanning Casey for something, anything that could indicate that she had made the wrong call. "With this whole... arrangement?"

Casey frowned, as if trying to understand what Kono was talking about.

"Am I supposed to know what you're asking me?" Casey asked. "Because, honest to God, I have no idea..."

"I mean Julie."

"What about her?"

"She... just lost her parents. And they didn't die due to natural causes, you know..."

Realization suddenly struck Casey and she held up a hand so that Kono would stop talking.

"I'm alright. Don't worry."

Kono kept her eyes locked on Casey for a moment; Casey rolled her eyes.

"Don't you have... you know, work to do?" she asked indicating the small gathering of males right behind her.

"Promise me you'll let me know if it's too much, or—"

"I promise. Now, if you don't mind, I'll go back... there."

Kono watched as Casey turned her back on her and reentered Danny's office. She kept staring at the closed door for a moment. She let out a sigh and turned to join the rest of her team.

"Are **you** okay?" Danny asked. The way he asked and how he put emphasis on the "you" indicated that she didn't look alright. And she didn't know exactly how she felt...

"Yeah," Kono answered either way. "It's just..."

"You're worried," Steve said, finishing the sentence that Kono didn't plan to finish and voicing everyone's thoughts. Even though they were trying so hard not to hear, it was nearly impossible, really. "It's okay. We get it."

Kono shook her head. "It's not okay... Not really," she said, putting her hands on her hips. "I mean..."

"She's your little sister," said Danny. "She's your family and family is a very delicate deal? Trust me, babe, we get it. Do I need to mention Matt?"

"Or Mary?" Steve added in a friendly tone. "It is okay, Kono... And, if you want my opinion as an outsider, I think she's fine."

"I can't believe I'll say it, but I agree with Rambo," Danny said softly. "I think little Kalakaua is all right."

Kono looked from Steve, to Danny and then to Chin. Chin didn't seem that worried anymore so, maybe Danny and Steve were right.

"Okay, so, what have we got?"

**—H50—**

Casey closed the door behind her as she went back inside the tiny room. She tried so hard to leave the conversation she'd had with Kono outside but it was inevitable; Casey looked at the little girl sitting on the floor, doing some drawings, completely oblivious to what was around her and she couldn't help...

Of course, Casey was nowhere near that age when she learned that her father had been murdered but still... She couldn't imagine how that little girl's life would be affected by it. Casey had and still has a loving family; Julie, on the other hand...

"Casey! Look!"

Julie's voice suddenly brought Casey back. The little girl was waving the paper she'd been drawing while Casey was talking to Kono.

Casey put a smile on her face very quickly so she wouldn't startle the little girl and kneeled on the ground.

"Wow... This is so beautiful," she said staring at the paper in awe. There were three stick figures, one male and two females, a house, a smiling sun — there were some inconsistencies with the drawing but Casey knew better than to mention it. "Are you an artist and you didn't tell me?" Casey added with a wide open smile.

Julie beamed and chuckled. Casey was never that good with children, but she could tell that Julie was very proud of her drawing and for the compliment she received on it.

"This is mommy," she said pointing at one of the tall figures; the one with long hair. "This is daddy," she pointed to the other tall figure. "This is me," Julie said indicating the smallest of all three. She was standing in the middle of them both. "And this is our home."

"Wooow... This is amazing," she said when Julie looked up at her again. "But... where's Scotty?"

"Oh, right!"

Julie took the paper again and put the crayon back to work. When they'd stopped by Kono's house, Casey had taken some sheets of paper and, surprisingly enough, she'd found some old crayons and she'd brought those too, figuring she'd need something to keep the kid busy.

"Here!" Julie said with her high pitched voice and pulled the paper from the ground. "Scotty," she pointed to the newest addition to the drawing.

"Oh, there it is!" Casey said with a grin.

"Now, I'm gonna draw something else," Julie said as she put the first draw aside and pulled a new sheet of paper from the bag that Casey had brought.

In all honesty, for someone who didn't think she could handle children like Kono did, Casey believed she was doing a pretty decent job. It was easy to be with Julie.

Since she'd given her the crayons and papers, the little girl wasn't sulking or asking about her mommy and daddy, and Casey loved that. She didn't know how to break the news to a five year old child.

Lying on the ground of Danny's office, Casey took a sheet and a crayon and decided to do some doodles as well. She'd had some classes in school and she wasn't that terrible with a pencil so she just went with it. Before she could stop herself, Casey was drawing the face of the man she'd seen on the passenger seat of the car that kept driving around the Evans's house.

As she started drawing, more details returned. The long greasy gray hair that was about shoulder length, the scar in the shape of a wonky cross on his left cheek, the broken nose, the thin lips, his furrowed eyebrows, the marked skin, the cold almond eyes... Casey was far enough to know that she didn't get a perfect look at his eyes, but she knew somehow that they were cold.

"Who is that?" Julie asked and Casey looked at her intently. The little girl was curiously staring at her raw sketch. "Is this a friend of your?"

"He's not," Casey replied absent mindedly as she looked at the drawing.

"Then, who is it? He's— scary..."

Casey then decided that that was it. She didn't want to scare the little girl so she put the drawing turned upside down on table.

"He's just someone I saw earlier today," she told Julie, trying to sound convincing. Apparently it worked because the next thing Casey knew was that she was completely focused on Julie's new drawing — which was a castle of some sort and she's telling her a story about the princess that lives there. Although, she couldn't stop thinking about the man whose face she had reproduced on paper.

**—H50—**

Chin pulled everything he could on David Kame and the 4Runner.

Turns out that David Kame died a few months ago; he was 83 years old and he died due to natural causes. His son got the car and that's where things got interesting.

"Meet Luke Kame," Chin said as he sent the picture of a middle age Chinese guy to the big screens. "According to his record, he was arrested for drug possession about three weeks ago by HPD. The guy has charges for robbery and assault and was arrested a couple more times for the same problem with drugs."

"Unless he learned... teleportation or something like it, I don't think he killed the Evans," Danny said.

"Speaking of which, what do we have on the Evans?" Steve asked; his brows furrowed.

"Nothing," Chin said looking at Steve. "As far as I can tell, the Evans didn't even have a speeding ticket."


	9. Just Nuisance

_"Speaking of which, what do we have on the Evans?"_

_"Nothing. As far as I can tell, the Evans's don't even have a speeding ticket. They're like... model citizens."_

After hearing Chin's words, Steve's frown grew bigger.

"No one breaks into the house of model citizens," Steve said annoyed; not at Chin or anyone in particular, he was just... bothered.

"Well, we talked to a friend of the Evans's, Zoe, and she said they didn't seem to be conspicuous," Danny told Steve blankly.

"Although," Kono said carefully. "Zoe said that the Evans's moved to Hawaii about two years ago?" she addressed Danny a questioning look and he nodded. "Yeah."

Steve was following, but barely.

"Wait," he said waving a hand. "Who's Zoe? And how did you get to talk to her?"

"Zoe Chambers, friend of the Evans family, was taking care of Julie Evans yesterday," explained Danny. "She stopped by the house this morning to take the little girl back to her parents…"

"Did she say where the Evans's were last night?"

Kono nodded. "She said it was their anniversary and they went out to celebrate… she said Georgia mentioned they were going to a restaurant, the _La Mer_ , then going to see some play at the Hawaii Opera Theatre."

That was a start and way better than "nothing", Steve thought to himself.

"Alright, Chin, run full background check on the victims, Georgia and Robert Evans. Find out what they did before they came to Hawaii, where they lived two years ago, their circle of friends, everything. Maybe we'll find the answer there. Kono, La Mer. Go to the restaurant; see if something happened while they were there. Danny and I will go to the Theatre."

Kono hesitated for a moment, and Chin didn't miss it.

"Hey, it's all good," he told her when he noticed Kono's eyes locked on Danny's office.

She bit on her lower lip as she looked from Chin then to the office with its blinds shut.

"I'll keep an eye on them," he reassured her and she indulged.

"Alright," she said as she walked towards the doors, following Steve and Danny's steps. "Keep me posted!"

"Roger that."

**—H50—**

"Well, this is a nice place," Danny said as he and Steve walked inside the Opera Theatre at the South Beretania Street. "I never thought I'd see something this fancy in this pineapple infested hellhole."

Steve arched an eyebrow as he stared at Danny.

"Seriously? Still with that one? It's old, Danno. Besides, I happen to know you love it here."

"Really? That's what you think? Let me tell you, buddy. You're wrong. So completely wrong," he muttered.

Steve summed up his response with a half smile as they approached the man they were there to talk to.

"Mr. Hodges?" Steve asked the man in suit and tie in front of him; the man nodded. "Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett, Detective Danny Williams, Five-0. Were you here last night, sir?"

"Sure. The entire time," he replied with a short nod. "Why?"

"Do you remember this couple?" Danny asked, showing him a photo of the Evans.

The gray-haired man took it and looked at the two people very carefully, until he shook his head.

"No... Sorry," he said as he handed the photo back to Danny. "We had a full house last night."

"Alright... Uh— did something happen? After the play? Anything?"

Once again, Hodges shook his head.

"Not that I know of... But I'd suggest you talk to Joe," he added. "He's the security," Hodges explained when Steve slightly frowned. "Maybe he'll be more helpful."

"Thanks, Mr. Hodges," Steve said as he shook hands with the man. "We appreciate your time."

"No problem."

.

Unfortunately, Joe wasn't helpful either. He did recognize Georgia and Robert Evans, but all he could say about them was that they looked really happy.

"Well... That was a bit disappointing," Danny said as he and Steve marched back to the Camaro.

"Tell me about it."

"Everyone we talk to says they're a perfectly normal, happy people... There is no such thing!"

Steve glanced at his partner. "Why's that?"

"They're married," Danny said, and he gesticulated. "Married people aren't that happy."

"And you say this out of personal experience, of course," Steve trailed as he jumped inside the Camaro. Driver seat as always.

"Obviously. I've been there," Danny continued with his babbles as he got into his seat and closed the door. "There is no such thing as permanent bliss when it comes to marriage. Marriage is hard."

"You know, just because you had a terrible experience with it, doesn't mean it's always that terrible," Steve said as he pulled out of the parking spot.

Danny looked at Steve with blank eyes. "Seriously? Are you Hitch now?"

"What? Am I wrong?"

"I can't..."

"I'm serious, man. I mean..."

"Have you ever been married?"

Steve looked at Danny out of the corner of his eye. He could see "rhetorical" stamped there.

"Just because I've never been married, it doesn't mean I don't know, Daniel."

"Yes, it does, Steven. Yes, it does. And you know why? Because you never had to live with a person, under the same roof, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I mean, there's the good part of it, obviously, but there's the part in which you compromise. All those little details that drive you nuts but you have to learn how to deal with it. I'm not saying that it's terrible for everyone, I'm saying that no one is happy all the time. No one, especially married people."

Steve listened to the heated and quite passionate explanation quietly, although he did spare a few glances every now and then at his ever talkative partner. Steve was trying not to laugh at how invested Danny always appeared to be in an argument; it was always funny to hear him ranting like that.

"You know, Danno. For a person of your size, you nag too much."

Danny addressed Steve what the ex-SEAL called "the glare of death". He knew Danny was pissed at him, but that was still too hysterical.

"Shut up... freaking animal."

**—H50—**

By the time that Steve and Danny got back to the 'Iolani Palace, Kono was there as well.

"Please tell us that you found something," Danny said as they approached the smart table, where the two cousins were standing.

As they passed by it, both Steve and Danny spared a look to Danny's office and they noticed Casey and Julie were still in there.

"If by something you mean more statements that said that our victims were just like any other couple, normal and ordinary, then yes," Kono said when they joined them.

"Something's really wrong with this case," Danny whispered as he crossed his arms across his chest.

"What about you, Chin?" Steve asked before agreeing with Danny. He had high hopes that Kono would get something from the restaurant. Anything in fact, but it was like they were chasing a smoke trail. "Find anything on the Evans?"

"That's what I was about to tell Kono," he said and, the way he said those words, it made Steve shift in his place and pay extra attention. "I did find some interesting things on our victim, Robert Evans."

With a smooth movement, Chin put the driver's license of Robert on the screen.

"49 years old, Robert Evans worked at a Construction Company in New Jersey since 2005, then was transferred to Hawaii two years ago when they expanded their business to the Island."

"Anything on this Company?" Steve asked as he analyzed the information on the screen.

"No. It's all clear. Their business is legit. But that isn't the interesting part yet," he said as he tapped on a few buttons. "Before he started working for Winston's Constructions, he was a military guy."

Steve took a deep breath. He didn't exactly love it when they had cases that tied to the military. Too much bureaucracy.

"He was a Marine," Chin added, looking at all of his co-workers.

"Alright," Steve said with a tired sigh. "Where did he serve?"

"England," Chin answered; Steve frowned. "He was a _Royal_ Marine."

Just when they thought things couldn't get worse, they did.

Robert Evans was a member of the Royal Navy. He wasn't American; he was born in the United Kingdom. He married an American woman, retired from the Navy and moved to the States... and died in Hawaii. Murder.

"Oh, man... This is gonna suck," Kono said tiredly.

Judging by the lack of replies regarding her out loud thought, everyone in the room agreed with her.

**—H50—**

Casey spent almost her entire morning with Julie, in Danny's office, drawing.

She noticed when Danny, Steve and Kono left, and also noticed when they arrived a couple hours later. Casey wasn't tired of being with Julie, but she was curious to know whether they were able to contact a relative. She didn't feel right about hiding the truth from the little girl...

Casey was about to leave the tiny office and ask Kono about that when Julie showed her another of her drawings.

"This is Timmy and this is Nui," Julie said happily as she pointed to the two figures on the paper.

"Oh, aren't they cute," Casey said with a wide open smile, even though she had no idea what they were. "Are they friends of Scotty?"

Julie nodded. "Yep. Daddy gave them to me when he came back home last year..."

"Really? Where are they from?"

"They're from Egg Land."

Casey frowned.

"Egg Land?"

"Uhum. I asked where it was, because I thought it was a funny name," Julie said as she continued to drabble on the paper. "He said it was... Egg Land."

Casey had been lying on the floor the whole time, trying to keep up with Julie at drawing, and she was quite happy with it because it was an easy way to pass the time, but when the kid said those words, she dropped the crayon she was holding.

"Julie, do you think I talk... funny?" Casey asked looking curiously at the little girl in front of her.

Casey remembered when she met Grace the other day, the first thing that the little girl noticed was her British accent. Casey knew it was what everyone noticed first but, for some reason, Julie didn't.

Julie just shook her head. "No," she said simply. "You talk like daddy."

"What about your mommy?"

"No. Mommy doesn't talk like daddy... she talks like Mrs. Zoe."

Casey looked at the drawings again and, just like that, it changed. It didn't change _change_ , but she understood what they were now.

"Miss Casey?" Julie's soft voice made Casey snap out of her thoughts. "I need to go to the bathroom," she said as she bit on her lower lip.

"Sure thing, honey," Casey said as she stood up. "Let's go," she said reaching a hand to Julie. The other was holding the drawing that she'd just made.

.

The four Five-0s were tiredly staring at the picture of Robert Evans, the Royal Marine, trying to figure out what their next move would be when they heard footsteps.

It was Casey and Julie.

Chin did make the photo disappear even though the little girl had already seen it. He knew that because of the look in her eyes; they had changed when she saw her father's face.

Casey had seen it too, and, as soon as her eyes left the now empty screen, they found Kono's.

"Julie needs to go to the bathroom," she explained. "Can you... show us?"

"Sure," Kono said and she walked with them to the little corridor.

"On you go," Casey told Julie when they entered the bright white room. "I'll be waiting right outside, okay?"

Julie nodded and walked to one of the doors.

Once she closed the door after her, Casey turned to Kono, who was still standing there, but was about to say something.

"I need to talk to you," Casey blurted in a whisper before Kono could voice anything.

Kono picked up with Casey's serious tone and changed the words before they left her mouth.

"What's wrong?"

"Julie's father was RN."

"What?"

"Military guy. Royal Navy."

Kono frowned. "How'd you know that?"

Casey raised the paper with the drawing.

"Just Nuisance."


	10. Her Majestesty's Armed Forces

Less than a minute after Kono escorted Casey and Julie to the bathroom, the three of them returned; although, instead of joining them, Kono headed outside and returned moments later with a Police Officer.

Chin, Danny and Steve didn't have a clue about what on Earth was going on there, but they didn't have to wait too long to know. They had just taken Julie back to Danny's office when Kono returned. With Casey.

The three men just glanced at each other when they noticed that the young Kalakaua wasn't going anywhere, but didn't say a word. They didn't have the chance to say anything for that matter because, as soon as they stepped next to the smart table, Kono told Casey to "tell them".

"Alright. I know you already learned that Robert Evans was a Royal Navy officer, so I'll skip this pa—"

"Woah, woah, woah... Hold on for a second," Danny said waving a hand and frowning. They were all frowning. "You know? How did that happen?"

"Did you tell her?" Chin asked, voicing the one question that he, Steve and Danny were thinking.

"No," Casey answered before Kono could say anything. "She didn't say a word. I figured it out."

"How?" Chin looked at Casey with curious and dubious eyes.

She simply placed the drawing at the table. They gathered around it but, just like Casey, they had no clue what it was.

"Are we supposed to know what this means?" Steve asked as he looked more carefully at the two "figures".

"This is how I figured it out. Julie drew it, these are some of her stuffed animals, Timmy and Nui. Her father, Robert, brought those for her from England," she explained when they just kept staring at her like she was speaking Greek instead of English. "Now, Timmy stands for Timothy, the Tortoise. She was found on a Royal Navy ship over a hundred years ago. And Nui stands for 'Just Nuisance', the only—"

"The only dog ever to be enlisted in the Royal Navy," said Steve absent mindedly.

Casey tilted her head to her left just a little.

"That would be correct," she said a bit surprised.

"Wait? Timothy is a _"she"_?" Danny asked doubtful.

"They thought it was a he, but, turns out it was a she," Casey said with a shrug.

"Guys! You're missing the point," Kono told them.

"Right. So, I assume you're having some...issues with the whole "gathering-information-about-the-victim" process, am I correct?" Danny and Steve's frown could've gone unnoticed, but not this time. "My dad was a cop and I do like movies," Casey explained with a shrug. "Anyhow, I think... I think I might be able to help you with that."

"Is that so?" Chin arched an eyebrow.

"Well, I can't tell for sure but yeah. I mean, I hope so."

"Wait. Don't tell me you left Hawaii and then decided to join the Navy too..."

Casey shook her head. "I didn— _too_?"

"Someone had the idea a few years back," Danny said, indicating Steve.

"Huh... Lovely," Casey said absent mindedly as she looked at the tall, dark haired man. He did have this thing in his eyes... "But no. I did not join the Royal Navy while I was in the United Kingdom. Although, I did met this guy who served in the naval warfare service branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces..."

"You... met a guy from the Royal Navy?" Chin asked curiously; Casey's words were a tad too careful, which probably influenced him asking that question.

"Yes."

"And you think this friend of yours would be willing to help us, if you asked?" Steve asked interested.

Would he? That was a question to which Casey didn't know the exact answer. It's been a while since she last spoke with the guy but... "I think it's worth a try, isn't it? I mean, what's the worst that can happen?"

Steve could think of a few things but, honestly, were they worst than being stuck?

"So... can you call him?" asked Steve; to say that Casey's words about a possible help didn't lift him up a bit it was a lie, but he was careful. He knew that it was a long shot that Casey's friend from the Royal Navy could turn into a source of information and there were so many things that could get in the way...

"Uh— Yeah. Yes, I think I can call him," Casey said, slightly hesitant.

Steve didn't say anything, but he was this close to asking her to "please, make the phone call" when Casey recognized that look in his eyes and just nodded at him before he could speak.

She wondered why on Earth he would have asked her to do so when she kind of offered to do so in the first place (well, she didn't offer but she did tell them about her friend — it was implied), but that attitude sort of became clear to her after Kono muttered an "excuse us for a second" and practically dragged her a few feet away from everyone else.

"Bloody hell... What was that?" Casey told her sister as she rubbed her arm, where Kono's hand had grabbed her. She was slightly annoyed with Kono's kindness.

"You dated a Royal Marine."

Kono's abrupt (and very intrusive) words made Casey stop rubbing her arm as she went numb for a moment. She wasn't asking.

"Pardon?" she muttered after what seemed to be an eternity.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Why—" Was that really happening? Were they really talking about that now? Casey felt a bit lightheaded. "Are you serious?"

"Casey..."

"I didn't tell you because I didn't see the relevance! I mean... Why would my personal life be any relevant to this? It's not like I'm involved with... whatever is happening here."

Kono looked at her sister blankly for a while.

"I didn't say you were."

"Well, it was implied," Casey said truly annoyed now. "Dad's a cop. You don't think I remember how he interrogated that guy you went to the Prom with?"

Kono went speechless and her eyes drifted to the floor as the memories of that night flooded her mind. She hardly ever thought of it but yeah, her dad questioned James for a good five minutes to know what his intentions were...

"I'm not stupid, Kono..."

Kono raised her head and her eyes found Casey's. "I'm not saying you are," she said honestly. "And I'm not implying you're involved with any of it..."

"Then what is it?"

"You dated a Navy guy..."

Casey frowned but when she noticed the smirk that was creeping up on her sister's expression, she rolled her eyes instead.

"Oh, please... What are we? Twelve?"

"Why you didn't tell me?"

"Because."

"Is he cute?"

"Kono..."

"Does he know you're here?"

"Shouldn't you be working as of _right now_?"

"I should meet him..."

"Alright! That's enough. I'm out of here."

Faster than lightning, Casey bolted out of the Headquarters; she certainly didn't want to carry on with that discussion about her personal life in front of an audience...

**—H50—**

"Well, that was interesting," Danny said once Casey disappeared through the glass doors.

They weren't purposely listening to the conversation between the two sisters, but it was hard to shut it out when they were talking not that far from where they were standing.

"I meant the fact that we might be able to go somewhere with the investigation," he hurried to give an explanation to Chin, who was staring at him.

"Sure. It's awesome," Steve intervened. "But the problem is: what if it's related to his background as a Royal Marine?" He inquired, bringing people's attention back to the case. Kono was already back with them. "We don't have jurisdiction outside Hawaii..."

"Well, we can't just drop it," Kono said promptly. "There's a little girl who's gonna grow up without her parents and they did die on our soil."

"I know," Steve said with a tired sigh. "I know... Chin, have you contacted anyone from the Evans's family?"

"Georgia Evans has a sister who lives in Pasadena, California," he said promptly. "I tried to call her but she's not answering."

"Okay. Anyone else?"

"Everyone else lives on the East Coast and, obviously, in the United Kingdom," Chin explained. "I can try calling them too..."

Steve rubbed his face. "Alright. I have a friend in LA, I'll call him to see if he can help track Georgia's sister. Chin, make the phone call. We need to contact her family... Kono, I want a list of everyone who knew the Evans. Friends, co-workers, anyone. Maybe someone can help..."

"What about me?"

Steve looked at the door; Casey hadn't returned yet.

"Well, Julie is in your office..."

"I got it."

**—H50—**

Casey did as she said and called her ex-boyfriend. She knew for a fact that Colin was still in the RN, even though they hadn't talked in almost six months...

Casey didn't even have time to think how this could be an awkward conversation — she didn't even have that luxury; Casey knew she needed to do it. A little girl had lost her father and mother; she could talk to her ex all right.

.

When Casey walked back into the HQ, the place had this weird sense of emptiness. At first she found it to be strange, but she soon realized what was happening. They were all back in their own offices, and they all looked busy. All but one.

She couldn't decide whether that was a good or a bad thing, all she knew was that Danny wasn't the only one not talking on the phone.

Even though she didn't know the blonde detective well enough, that's where she headed to — his office.

"Hi," she said as she knocked on the door and cracked it open when he looked at her and gave a small smile.

"Come in," Danny said gesturing for her to step inside and so she did. "Just, keep it low, we do not want to wake her."

Casey glanced at Danny's couch, where Julie was sleeping soundly.

"I would hate to wake her up," she half whispered as she entered his office.

Danny indicated the seat across from his desk and Casey walked towards it.

"I found this on my desk," Danny said when the young Kalakaua sat in front of him. She was wondering what it was that he had in his hands but then, she remembered. "You did it?"

"I... uh— yes."

"It's impressive."

"It's the man I saw earlier today," Casey explained, even though it wasn't necessary. Danny had heard her description so he knew.

"This is great," Danny said, holding the raw sketch with one hand. "Are you some kind of artist?"

Casey smiled. "Some kind... I studied Arts for a short while. Dreamed of being an artist."

"As far as I can tell, you're pretty good at it."

"Thanks. That is very kind of you."

"You're welcome. Also, this can be a lead. Something for us to work with."

"Maybe. I should head to an HPD precinct and talk to someone who'll do a better job with the sketch... With a bit of luck, maybe you'll have a suspect."

Danny sat back in his chair as he looked at Casey. She had a way with police work.

"You seem very familiar with it," he said casually. There were no hidden meanings in his words.

"That's what happens when you grow in a family of cops," Casey replied with a small smile. "You learn a lot just by hanging around... Quite impressive I must say."

Danny smiled back at Casey. She was a very smart girl, he thought, and he was about to say so when he noticed Steve coming to his office.

"Hey."

Casey turned to find Steve by the door.

"You busy?" he asked looking at both Danny and the young woman.

"Uh— No. Not really," Danny answered; that was Steve's cue to join them. "News from your LA friend?"

"Actually yeah," Steve said, his fingers tapping on the top of the desk. "He said he'd speak to LAPD and check the address and her workplace. He'll call when they get something."

"That's cool. Very nice... Now, check this out," Danny said handing Steve the sketch that Casey had made.

Just like Danny, Steve recognized some peculiar characteristics of the drawing. He looked at the paper, then at Danny and finally at Casey.

"Is this the guy you told Kono you saw?" he asked, quite intrigued.

"Roughly speaking, yes."

"Did you do this?"

"Yes, sir. In fact, I was just telling... Danny, right?" He nodded. "I was just telling Danny I should go to the HPD precinct, talk to someone so they could make a better sketch. Maybe the guy has a record and then you'll have a solid lead."

"This is great work. Were you a cop or something like that in London?"

Casey chuckled. "Not really. I worked for a Security Company but I was just a secretary..."

"You'd have a future."

"I guess it runs in the family," she said as she glanced at Kono's office. She was still on the phone. "I did talk to my friend in London," she said as she stood up from the armchair she'd been sitting in. "He said he'll see what he can do, talk to his superior and things like that and will call me later."

"Thank you for doing this," Steve told her; and he was going to continue with his thanks but Casey waved it off with a shy smile.

"It was nothing, really..."

"It'll be a lot for her," Danny said indicating the little girl that was still asleep.

"Speaking of which, I think I should go to the HPD precinct now. The sooner I get this done, the better. Nothing's worse than time stretching when you need answers... Gentlemen."

Steve and Danny knew what Casey was talking about. One didn't have to be a genius to figure it out once they'd heard what she'd been through...

"Hold on," Steve said abruptly.

Casey had just walked through the doors but she stopped, holding it open. She looked at him and Steve could see this spark of curiosity in her eyes.

"I'll drive you," he told her kindly.

Casey wasn't expecting that; actually she was just trying to remember whether she had saved the taxi's number to her contacts or not.

"Oh... That is— very _aloha_ of you but it won't be necessary," she said extremely shyly. Why? She had no clue. But she'd be damned if she got used to that...

"It's all good. I don't mind. Besides, I needed to check if the CSUs found anything," Steve explained. "Danny, since we're on this matter, we should canvas the area. Get Chin and Kono to talk to neighbors, see if anyone saw or heard anything. I'll talk to Duke, get HPD to help."

"Yes, sir. Oh, and Casey?"

"Yes?"

"Do you have life insurance?"

Casey frowned. "I do... Why do you ask?"

Danny was about to answer when Steve intervened.

"Don't pay attention to him," he said, glaring at the blonde man behind the desk. "Let's go."

"May God have mercy on your soul," Danny shouted as loud as he dared to, which wasn't too much.

As she followed Steve's steps, Casey heard those words, though, and now she was frowning, inwardly and outwardly.

**—H50—**

Even though Kono had been busy with her research, she noticed when Casey walked past her office, right after Steve.

She didn't gave that much thought — the only one that occurred to her was that she had spoken with her Royal Navy ex-boyfriend and was probably briefing Steve or something like that — but when she heard the words that Danny had, not exactly yelled or shouted, but said in a quile loud manner, Kono frowned and put her work aside for a moment.

.

Danny was going through the paperwork that was piling up on his desk when he noticed someone approaching his office. He didn't need to have a better look because he knew it was Kono.

"Hey," she said as she opened the door and walked into his office without knocking.

"Hey..."

"Where did they go?"

Danny gave Kono a small smile. She was doing one hell of a good job as an older sibling...

"7th HPD Precinct," he said simply. "Casey wanted to talk to a police sketch artist and Steve would to talk to Duke, get HPD help to canvas the area."

"Why?" Kono asked as she knitted her brows together in concern.

"Because of this." Danny pulled the A4 paper that Casey had drabbled.

"Wait... This is... This is the guy she told me she'd seen driving by the Evans's house."

Kono looked away from the sketch and at Danny with wide open eyes.

"Yep."

"Who did this?"

"Mini Kalakaua."

"Casey did this?"

"Either she did or Little Miss Sunshine there did," Danny said indicating Julie.

"Wow," Kono said looking at the drawing. It sure wasn't the most realistic drawing ever but it was pretty good. "I knew she had an artistic vein, I just never thought..."

Danny didn't need to be a detective with skills to read people to know what was happening. The spark in her eyes, the way she looked at the drawing, how Kono behaved when Casey said she could help... She was proud of her sister. It was more than obvious that, despite their past, Kono was really happy that Casey was there.


	11. What is?

Steve and Casey walked to his blue Chevy Silverado that was parked next to Kono's red Cruze in silence. The young Kalakaua found it quite awkward and, once again she would have tried to politely deflect his offer and just hail a cab if he hadn't put an end to that loud silence.

"I owe you a big thank you," Steve said as he deactivated the alarm of his truck and walked around it.

"Pardon?"

"For trying to help us," he said as he opened the passenger door and looked at Casey. She had stopped when she heard his words.

"Oh, I already told you... that was nothing, really," she replied as she got into the passenger seat and shut the door. Remembering Danny's words, the first thing she did was to fasten her seatbelt. "Besides, Colin didn't call me back with an answer yet so..."

"Colin."

"You know..."

"Ex-boyfriend from the Royal Navy," Steve said as he pulled out the parking spot. "Yeah, I kind of heard that."

"Yeah... I'm fairly certain that everyone _kind of_ heard that," Casey muttered; Steve smirked. "Anyhow, still too soon to thank me," she added fairly quickly, hoping that it would end that conversation.

It did. At least sort of.

"Maybe... but you did a pretty good job with the drawing," Steve said, not allowing silence to settle.

"Thanks."

"Where'd you learn to draw like that?"

"University of the Arts London."

They were currently stopped at a red light so Steve allowed himself to address a look at the woman by his side. "So you're an artist."

"I would hardly call myself an artist," Casey replied with a chuckle. "I took classes for about a year and then I left... didn't graduate, nor came close to it to be fairly honest..."

"Really? Why'd you do that?" Steve asked as the red turned to green and they were rolling again.

"When I was younger, I dreamt of becoming an artist so I wanted to try it. See if it would work," Casey explained and, every now and then, Steve would take his eyes off the road and look at her. "I fancied it quite a lot," she continued. "And, maybe, if things had been different, I would've gone all the way... But my priorities changed..."

"Because of your father's murder," Steve said; it wasn't really a question, but his words did sound a bit careful.

Casey bit on her lower lip as Steve said that. She locked her eyes on the car that was right in front of Steve's and kept them there for a while.

Even though it might have looked like Casey was avoiding Steve because of what he had said, she wasn't really. She was just avoiding the subject of her father...

"Yes," she admitted after a handful of seconds.

Steve looked at her once again and found Casey's green eyes looking back at him.

"When you learn that someone you care about was murdered, even if you didn't have the most functional or the best relationship ever, it changes you," Casey said seriously. "When something like that happens... it changes you, whether you like it or not, whether you want it to or not..."

Right there, floating on the surface of those deep green eyes, Steve saw something that made him feel odd. He saw determination; probably the same look he had when Victor Hesse killed his father and he accepted the Governor's offer to run a Task Force in Hawaii.

Steve recognized some traits that were most definitely inherited from the Kalakaua's — such as resilience, strength, true grit — but he could also see that there was a whole different side of that young woman that he doubted anyone else knew. He recognized something that he often saw when he looked in the mirror.

"I know what you mean," Steve said as he made a turn to the left and got to the street of the 7th Precinct.

Casey realized that he meant it. Even though he wasn't looking straight at her, she could tell he meant it. She didn't enjoy learning it, though.

"I'm sorry," she told him when he parked his truck near the HPD building. "No one should know what I mean."

"Well," Steve said as he pulled the key out of ignition and stepped out of the vehicle. "No one should know, period."

"Probably," Casey agreed as she followed Steve and got out of the truck.

She didn't mean to talk about it; in fact, she usually thoroughly avoided the subject with practically everyone but, for some reason that was unknown to her, she decided to do it now, which was weird, but at the same time, not weird at all...

**—H50—**

At the 7th precinct, Casey spoke to the police sketch artist, a Native Hawaiian in his late forties named Ula.

She did as she'd said and tried to describe, in great detail, the man with the scar she'd seen earlier that day. It was quite easy since Ula helped her throughout the process.

"That's it," Casey said once he showed what he was able to come up with from the information that she provided. "That looks exactly like the man I saw..."

Staring back at her was an identical picture of the man with the cross shaped scar, only this one was in black and white instead of in purple.

"Well, shouldn't be too hard to find this man," Ula commented. "A man with such unique characteristics should be easily recognizable."

"Let's hope you're right."

Both Casey and Ula turned fairly quickly when they heard the familiar grave voice coming from somewhere behind them.

Steve was standing there, looking directly at the paper Ula was holding.

"I'd like to have a copy of that," he said indicating the sketch. "I spoke with Duke, he'll have some of his men canvassing the area... I'll tell them to take this drawing with them. Maybe someone else saw him as well."

Ula nodded. "Roger that, sir. Miss."

Casey smiled politely at the uniform before he left to make a copy of the drawing so Steve and the other HPD uniforms could take one with them.

"Are you okay?" Steve asked looking at the young woman that was sitting on the chair. He had been watching Casey every now and then as she spoke with the police sketch artist and she was very serious as she described the man she'd seen... and now it was like her face was a white and empty canvas, void of any expressions.

"Yeah," Casey whispered as she looked at Steve. "I'm brilliant. Why do you ask?"

Her green eyes had a light glow, but now Steve could tell that she wasn't being completely honest. He knew it because he'd told himself and everyone else that not so honest truth over and over again, first when he lost his mother, and later when he lost his father. Maybe she shouldn't be that involved with their work...

"You seem... different." He couldn't think of a better word.

"I'm fine."

Steve didn't know whether he smiled or felt sorry for her. He could tell that she was taking, if not the same, then some oddly similar path as he did; their stories were oddly similar as well...

_Such_ _an_ _unpleasant thing to have in common with someone else_ , Steve thought to himself as he watched Casey stand up.

"Will you go back to the 'Iolani Palace?"

"Yeah. I'm just waiting for Duke..."

"Alright," Casey said with a nod when Steve's voice started to fade. "I'll just wait outside."

"Sure," Steve agreed as Casey turned on her heels and headed to the exit. "I'll be right out."

**—H50—**

As she got outside the precinct, Casey took a deep breath and leaned against the side of Steve's truck.

During the time she'd spent in the United Kingdom, she had toughened up and strengthened quite a lot. If she hadn't been through everything she had, right now she probably wouldn't be able to endure any of it... But still, something was bothering Casey and she just couldn't shake it off.

She was lost in thought when the ringtone of her phone brought her instantly back to reality.

"Colin, please, tell me you have something," Casey blurted as soon as she picked up her phone and saw his photo on the screen.

_"Case..."_ the British man replied from the other end.

Casey took a deep breath and remained silent for a while. The way he'd said her nickname was not exactly reassuring.

"Please... Don't say..."

_"No. I mean. I did get something... but, Casey, you have to understand that there's more to it than I can give you..."_

Figures.

.

Steve left the 7th precinct about five minutes after Casey. He found the blonde woman waiting next to his truck as she observed the street.

"Hey," he said as he approached her. Casey hadn't noticed his presence there until he spoke to her.

"Oh... Hi."

"Ready to go?"

"Sure."

"Alright then," Steve said as he opened the passenger door for Casey.

"Why, thank you," she told him a bit surprised but with a genuine smile. "How gentlemanly of you," she added as she got into her seat.

Steve half smiled back at her.

"It's the Aloha spirit," he said once he walked around his Silverado and sat behind the steering wheel again.

"Well, then I suppose I should say _mahaloz den, brah._ "

Steve chuckled. He found it hilarious when Kono's sister used Pidgin; her British accent combined with the Hawaiian dialect was something else.

"If you don't mind my asking," Steve said as he pulled his truck out of the parking spot. "How did you ended up in Hawaii? I mean, you're British..."

"No, I don't mind... Yes, I am British. Born in London, like my father, but my mother was American. She wasn't native Hawaiian, but was born here, in Honolulu."

"So... you have family here?" Steve risked a guess and Casey's brows slightly furrowed as if she was thinking how to answer that.

"My grandmother lived here and she was pretty much all the family I had from my mother's side in Hawaii, but she died when I was almost three and, before that I lived in London with my father so I don't really have any memories of her... But Ailani has been friends with my mother since they were _keikis_ and she knew my father as well, so I think, in a way, I've always had some sort of family here."

"Ailani?"

"Sorry... Mrs. Kalakaua. She and my mother were like _hanai_ sisters so, I think that's one of the reasons she took me in."

Every now and then, Steve glanced at the woman sitting next to him. There was something about her that Steve wanted so badly to know, what was her story but, at the same time, he didn't think he could pry into her life like that. He had his own share of things that he didn't exactly talk to everyone about so he understood the meaning of "privacy" and he knew exactly how to respect that, despite his curiosity.

"That's great," he said. "I mean, you and Kono seem to get along just fine."

As he looked at Casey, Steve noticed a smile playing on her lips.

"Yes," she said happily. "We do. Always did, against all odds."

Steve looked at Casey once more. The young blonde woman sitting by his side showed not one resemblance to the woman he'd seen just minutes ago at the precinct; there, Casey looked confident and certain, yes, but he also caught some glimpses of vulnerability and uneasiness. And Steve understood where all that came from; he didn't know her life story but he knew about her father and, even though she hadn't said it, he guessed that her biological mother wasn't alive either. That would sustain his theory about why Casey was doing everything she could to help them with this case.

"Oh... you almost made me forget," Casey said as she shifted in her seat and looked at Steve. "I have something for you."

Casey's words sort of surprised Steve. He'd been wandering about that very same woman when she spoke again, not really enthusiastically but it got his attention instantly. "Really? What's that?"

"As I was waiting for you, I got a word from Colin," she said.

"Oh..." For some unknown reason, Steve felt bothered by that revelation. He convinced himself it was because he didn't know whether Casey's ex-boyfriend would or would not be able to help them, but he did look away from Casey for a moment and fixed his eyes on the street. "And... uh— what did he say?"

"He said he would try to help with what he could... he got something."

"That's nice."

"He also wants to talk to you about it... Is that a problem?" she added; her words sounded pretty careful to Steve's ears, almost like she was unsure of it.

"No," he replied promptly as killed the engine of his truck next to Danny's Camaro. They had returned to the 'Iolani Palace. "Why do you ask?"

"Because you... sort of... frowned... a little," Casey said, still dubiously.

At her words, Steve furrowed his brows; it was only then he noticed that yes, he'd been squinting a little. He then eased his expression as he got out of the truck.

"No," he said reassuringly, making sure that he kept his face straight. "It's really not a problem."

"Alright then," Casey replied as she followed Steve as he headed to the Palace.

He wondered what on Earth was happening to him. Why had he frowned when she said that her ex wanted to speak to them? It could be because of the fact that they were investigating a case that wasn't restricted to his territory... _Right?_


	12. Royals and loyals

The first thing that Casey did when she got back to the Five-0 Headquarters was to try to put her hands on Kono's laptop so she could arrange a video call with her ex in London, but she was denied that and, instead, Kono escorted her to the Smart Table.

Once again, Casey checked her watch. It was 10:21 a.m. Hawaii time, so in London was 9:21 p.m.; not exactly late but considering that Casey had called Colin at around 9:30 a.m., it surely meant that he would have had to work some magic to get something for her in such a short time...

As she stood in front of that huge computer, Casey pressed re-dial and put her phone on speaker so she could talk and type at the same time.

She barely heard one ring coming from her phone when a voice filled the quiet room.

_"I don't see you..."_

"Just a second," Casey said. Even though every one of the Five-0 members were around her, it was more than evident that she was speaking to the male voice with a heavy accent that had come from her phone.

Should be her ex from the Royal Navy they all thought as they waited for her instant message load.

"Alright," she shouted when the loading spiral gave place to all the contacts she had on that IM service. She was connected.

Then it was almost instant. In a blink of an eye, there was a video call request on the corner of the big screen in front of them. Casey tapped on the "accept" button and then, there he was.

"Hello there, Colin..."

Displayed on the big screen for everyone to see, was Casey's ex — Colin. The Royal Navy guy wasn't exactly what any of the four people standing behind the young Kalakaua was expecting to see. In all honesty, their bets would have been someone around late twenties with the looks of James Bond or something like it, but Colin wasn't like that... not completely.

The man on the screen had dark blonde hair that had been cut short (a haircut that resembled the one Steve used to have before he changed to the Navy Reserves) framing a near square shaped face and chin that could chisel granite — no facial hair; he also had full straight eyebrows, long-lashed slightly narrowed piercing icy-blue eyes, light complexion, an up-turned nose and rose-ish lips that, in Kono's opinion were very appealing. No one could deny the simple fact that the man they were looking at was pretty handsome, not even Chin, Danny or Steve... They got it right with the James Bond's looks, but they couldn't have been more wrong with the age. Colin should easily be in his mid to late thirties.

Kono and Chin exchanged a glance. In fact, they all did, but the two that shared a more familiar bond with her had the most expressive expressions.

_"Hello there, Casey,"_ he said and his heavy British accent filled the room once more. _"You look great. I_ _like_ _the change."_

Casey blushed at his words, but only because she was at her sister and cousin's work place, talking to her ex-boyfriend that they hadn't heard about, in front of their co-workers. She thanked God that she had her back turned to the audience.

"Thank you," she answered slightly embarrassed. Casey had always been very careful to keep her private life private, and what had just happened was something of a different kind... "Uh— Colin, these are the officers I told you about. They're an elite task force operative in Hawaii," she continued, quickly changing the subject to something that would make her slightly less uncomfortable. Only slightly, though, since she could feel Kono and Chin's eyes fixed on her every now and then.

"Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett," said a voice coming from behind her. Steve's voice as Casey recognized it. "This is Detective Danny Williams, Officer Kono Kalakaua and Lieutenant Chin Ho Kelly. Five-0."

Colin nodded at each name and at each person that Steve had indicated. _"Commander Colin Rogers, Royal Marine for the British Armed Forces."_

Commander. That impressed not only the Five-0s that had just being introduced to Colin, but also Casey herself. Last time she heard of him, he was still a Lieutenant Commander.

"Nice meeting you, Commander Rogers," Steve told the man with a short nod. "I was told you'd like to speak with me, regarding our most recent case involving an ex-Royal Marine..."

_"Robert Evans. Yes. Casey told me about the situation you have in Hawaii,"_ said Colin.

"Yeah... And Casey told me that you could help us."

The young Kalakaua had taken a few steps back, leaving that talk to the interested sides, but hearing her name being said like Colin and Steven were doing, it made her feel halfway between uncomfortable and... flattered. Tending more to uncomfortable rather than flattered when Kono glanced at her with a smirk of a kind not so subtly hidden beneath her mask.

"I'll just... be with Julie while you guys... do your thing," Casey muttered as she not so discreetly left, heading to Danny's office. She didn't even address Colin one last glance or word.

—H50—

_"Commander McGarrett, as a man who had been in the service, I hope you can understand that there is a limit as to how I can assist your team and how much information I'm allowed to share..."_

Steve nodded.

"I am completely aware of such boundaries, Commander Rogers," he told the man on the screen. "And that leads me to a question... How is the Royal Navy dealing with this? I mean, Evans's death occurred on American soil..."

Colin nodded. _"And that's exactly why I was allowed to share some information regarding Evans with your task force."_

"So... No one's coming over or anything like that?"

_"I wouldn't know how to respond to your question at the present moment, Commander McGarrett... But, if it's of interest to you, I might find a way to let you know."_

Steve frowned. He didn't know what had made him jump to that conclusion, but when Casey said that her ex-boyfriend could help them, he didn't think the British man would be that much of an asset. Maybe he was missing something...

"And you would do that just because it is of interest to me?" Steve asked dubiously, though that didn't seem to have any effect on the blonde guy on the screen.

Colin chuckled. _"No, Commander. It wouldn't be_ just _because of that... It's also because I would be doing a favor to, not just you, but to the older Kalakaua and her cousin."_

At the mention of her last name, Kono furrowed her eyebrows and took a step forward. Up until now, she'd been in the background, just absorbing information that was relevant to the case...

"What do you mean?" she asked seriously. Chin had already taken his place by her side. "Are you talking about my sister? Is that right?"

_"That would be correct,"_ Colin said. _"But it's nothing related to the case, not directly at least,"_ he added when a confused and slightly alarmed expression appeared on everyone's faces.

"Well, then what is it?" Kono asked, her tone was very demanding.

_"Your sister, Casey, she went through a very tough path during the investigation of her father's murder... You really should ask her about it, but I'll tell you one thing and one thing only. She's a determined woman. During the investigation, she was pretty driven to get answers... I care about her. Casey is a good person. I just want to help and make things as easy as possible."_

Colin Rogers's words didn't exactly erase Kono's and Chin's worries but it did reduce them a little. Only a little. The four of them (and that obviously included Danny and Steve) were suddenly curious, maybe a bit concerned about Casey.

"Alright," Steve said, trying to change the subject back to the case. "But, I'm not wrong to presume that there is or there will be an investigation going on into Evans's murder over there, am I?"

_"I'm afraid I am not at liberty to answer that question,"_ Colin said simply and, to Steve, that was a big fat yes. He was right.

"Okay... So, what can you give us on Robert Evans that will shed a light on our work?"

.

To Steve's surprise, Commander Colin Rogers released Evans's file. Or at least part of it.

They had a list of all assignments he'd been sent on, though whatever explanation as to what happened, reports, anything was sealed, meaning they didn't have access to it.

"Well, at least we have a place to start, right?" That would be Danny. "I mean, we already know that he was engaged in a few conflicts..."

"A _few_ conflicts?" Kono commented; she was a bit desperate. "I've been engaged in a few conflicts! This guy... Gulf war, Bosnian war..." She kept listing the "few conflicts" that were in Robert's resume but there were so many. Not to mention the ones that were completely locked due to, according to Steve, their nature — CLASSIFIED. "How the hell are we going to narrow it down when we don't even have all the information?"

"Don't worry, cuz," Chin said, gently placing a hand on Kono's shoulder. "We'll figure it out."

Even though she wanted to believe Chin was right, Kono didn't exactly buy his words. And after what Colin had said, she was just so full of doubts and some not so cheerful thoughts... What if Casey got hurt? She was her little sister, she couldn't let that happen.

Then, it was almost like Steve could read her mind.

"She won't get hurt, Kono," said her boss; his tone was drenched with certainty. "Look around. Casey is surrounded by cops... She will be fine. We'll make sure she stays that way. All of us."

Kono looked at each and every one of the three men that were standing in a semi-circle kind of position. They all had the same determined look in their eyes; not that she doubted Steve's words, but seeing what she was seeing made Kono nod in agreement.

"Alright..."

"Alright, so, Casey talked with Ula about the guy she saw earlier today and he made a sketch." Steve put the paper he'd brought with him from the precinct on top of the Smart Table so that everyone could see what their suspect looked like. "We need to find this man."

"I can try to find a match in our databases," Kono suggested promptly.

"No," Steve told her. "I need you to do something else. Chin."

The moment his name rolled out of Steve's mouth, Chin Ho was already taking Kono's place and ready to do what Kono suggested but Steve continued, "Try accessing the military database. Evans was a military guy, maybe it'll let us know if we're dealing with something from his past or something entirely different."

Chin nodded and just as fast his fingers were tapping on the touch screen, looking for the military database that Steve had suggested.

"I'll call HPD," Danny told them. "Maybe they got a hit or something..."

Steve nodded, "Duke was leading the team. Use my office!"

"Got it," Danny said before heading to Steve's office to make the phone call.

Then Steve turned to Kono. The young woman was looking at him expectantly, but he doubted she would like what he was about to say, even though he considered it to be necessary.

"Okay. We need to talk to Julie..."

It was said and done. As Steve already expected, Kono's eyes widened with surprise.

"Talk? To Julie? As in _interrogate_ her?" she asked; her tone was more than just slightly outraged given what she had just said out loud.

Though Kono's surprise didn't shrink; if anything, it only grew bigger when Steve didn't deny her assumption.

"Boss, she's five years old..."

"She's also the only link to the Evans's we have," Steve said seriously. "Look, I'm not saying we take her to an interrogation room and ask her a lot of questions, Kono. What I'm suggesting is for us to talk to her and see if we can find anything that might help us... Maybe she doesn't know she knows something."

Kono bit on her lip as she thought about what Steve was saying. He wasn't out of his mind for wanting to do that, it was just... Julie was five years old. Would it be worth it? Kono knew the little girl would ask questions and she knew it would be hard to avoid the answer if they really wanted to get somewhere...

"Okay," she said finally. She wasn't very fond of the prospect, but she knew it was necessary. Kono knew that Steve was right, maybe Julie knew something, but she didn't know that she knew.

"Okay?"

"Yeah," Kono said with a nod. "I can do it..."


End file.
